Gatekeeper
by The Masked Duck
Summary: "I was seized by the stern hand of Compulsion, that dark, unseasonable Urge that impels women to clean house in the middle of the night."  - James Thurber
1. A Chainsaw and Sulfuric Acid

One

"Wh—what do we do?" Janice asked quietly. She was playing the part of old Sara very well. You know, big watery eyes and wimpy behavior. Thank goodness we thought to dress her in loose, all-covering clothes. They might've noticed the lean body mass. And the fact that she looked like a boy.

That's what I'm playing as. I'm the mysterious cloaked boy with enough knives to take down anything that comes in my way.

Sora and Kairi stared at the injured woman uncertainly. Her name was Maleficent. I don't know what her parents were thinking when she was born. But then again, maybe I didn't want to. The hulking Filipino guy that was supposedly Riku avoided looking at her by staring at the ceiling. Subtle. I glanced back at the limp woman lying on her stomach.

"Gawrsh, We can't leave her here, the heartless are coming!" The talking dog reasoned in a very eloquent fashion, if I do say so myself.

Janice looked at me warningly, sensing the sarcasm. It's not like I was going to voice my thoughts. I was the mysterious protector of Sara-the-Fucking-Useless, they all assumed I was mute.

I knew enough improvised sign language to explain my next action.

I cocked my hand back, exposing the rigged blade, and slammed my wrist into her neck. My blade was met with no resistence, which meant I cleanly severed her spine. She twitched and fell still. I straightened my hand, relishing the slick scrape the blade made as it returned into my bracer. Beautiful.

"What the heck did you do that for?" Janice screeched, playing her part perfectly. She even widened her eyes, leapt back, and covered her mouth. Everyone else just stared from the carcass to me in morbid silence.

I made enough obscure hand gestures to appear like I was actually communicating like that instead of through the psychic link. A quick summary of what I was thinking: wing it.

'Sara' sighed and patted my arm gently and whispered, "I understand your intentions were good, but you can't do things like that. Remember? I thought we talked about this."

More gestures.

"No, that still doesn't make it right."

"Wh—what's he saying?" Sora asked, deftly positioning himself between me and Kairi. Those two should just have sex and get it over with already. This courtship thing is annoying. Riku inched toward Janice at Sora's nod.

"He wanted to make sure she never hurt anyone ever again." Janice lied. We both knew that I was just taking care of an annoying problem. "He thought that would make me safe."

I had to think of broccoli covered in goopy cheese to keep myself from smiling at the idea of such a noble proposal coming from me. Riku caught the twitch at the corner of my mouth and stepped forward. "What's so funny?"

Oh shit. Janice, _think of something_! I made more improvised motions.

She blushed and smacked my hand, "Stop it! You're embarrassing me!"

I smirked and put my hands in my pocket casually. The others just stared at her expectantly.

She waved it off, "Never mind."

They accepted it, much to our relief.

We began to head out (finally), but Sora stopped me. The others kept going at his urging, and we were left alone in the room.

"Listen," his eyes narrowed. "I appreciate you protecting my little sister. But if you make any sort of move on her, I'll kill you."

Without another word, he left the room.

Janice thought the irony was hilarious. I was just thankful.

Not even Sora recognized me.

Which was good, seeing as _I'm_ his little sister.

TWO YEARS AGO

"Sara," Mom walked into the room and crossed her arms. "What did we talk about?"

I didn't look up from Modern Warfare 2, "Summer vacation is a time of rest and recovery. Being inside all day with my violent video games does not reflect well on my personality or help me with my plethora of anxiety and social disorders. At least I should sit out in the backyard and tan so I don't look like Edward Cullen when they take my yearbook photo. Did I forget anything?"

"Sara!"

"Fine," I saved my game and shut off the TV. "I'll be in the backyard de-vampire-ifying myself."

"Why don't you go to the islet with Sora?"

"Because nobody there likes me."

"That's because you don't talk to them."

"That's because they don't talk to me."

"Maybe you should start the conversation."

"Maybe they should start the conversation."

"Sara," she warned. "Go with Sora after lunch. Ok?"

"Why? So I can sit around and watch them fight while everyone drools over Riku? I'd rather pull out my toenails with rusty pliers."

"You know, I'll bet people your age will find you funny if you speak your mind."

"I'll remember that the next time I'm in a social situation and don't have an anxiety attack…oh wait…"

"I'm home! What's for lunch?" Sora bounded into the living room, cheerful as ever.

Mom brightened up (like she she always does when she's not talking to me), "Hey Sweetie! How does grilled cheese sound?"

"Great, thanks!" Mom disappeared into the kitchen and he turned to me. "She gave you the talk again?"

"Yup," I collapsed onto the couch, "Can you do me a favor and throw a fit when she tells you to take me to the islet?"

"No," his brow furrowed, "You should come! I want you to meet Tidus. He's shorter than you!"

"How old is he, seven?"

"Thirteen. You're only a year older than him."

"Or so he claims." I curled up, "Please?"

"Come on Sara, it'll be fun! You can hang out with all of us…"

"You know the chances of that are slim."

"Riku's been asking about you."

"I'll bet," I hugged my knees.

"It's weird, he's been like that since the New Year Party. Have you noticed anything?"

"Nope." That might be because I'm avoiding him. Just an idea.

"Huh. Where were you guys anyway?"

"I don't remember anything, I got drunk." A blatent lie. I remember making out with Riku on the back porch, but after that it's a little fuzzy.

"Oh yeah…Is champagne any good?"

"The expensive kind definitely is." I smiled, relieved with the safe topic.

"Sora, why don't you take Sara to the islet today?" Mom suggested bluntly as she walked into the room with his food.

Come on Sora, come on man, _please_…

"That sounds like fun!"

"Excellent, then it's settled!"

I cleared my throat, "Actually, I was planning on cashing my paycheck and shopping."

"No you weren't," they chorused.

I rolled my eyes, "I am now."

"Sara, it wouldn't kill you to at least be in the presense of other people."

"I _am_ in the presense of other people, at work."

"The coffee shop doesn't count."

"Why not? I hang out with hipsters and talk about the weather with senile old men. That's more socialization than I'll get at the islet."

000

Long story short, I'm sitting on Sora's rowboat while he jabbers on about how much fun we're gonna have.

"Too bad I left my pretty ponies at home," I rolled my eyes, "We could've had a tea party with them!"

"Sara, sometimes I wish you'd just shut up."

"Fine by me." I looked out at the mainland. "Do you mind if I swim back to shore? I want to buy this hoodie I've been keeping my eye on…"

"I promise I'll take you shopping tomorrow."

"I don't want to go on some big outing. I just want to buy my hoodie and go home."

"It'll be fun. We can hang out downtown all day! And I'll get a group together…"

"No, I'm out."

"Sara!" He whined.

"Sara!" A sickeningly familiar voice called from behind me. I twisted in my seat.

The dock was much closer than I thought, and (as luck would have it) Riku was standing at the edge.

I'm serious, God hates me. Maybe I'll start praying to Cthulhu.

Sora grinned, "I told you."

I sighed, "Is it too late to attempt to swim back?"

"Sara!"

"Fine," I crossed my arms. "You suck sometimes."

"Love you too."

"I thought you hibernated during the summer months," Riku greeted as Sora tied the boat up.

Come on Sara, say something sarcastic. Open your mouth and…darn. I quite literally felt my pulse speed up and my chest compress. So I just attempted to climb up onto the dock.

"Whoa," Riku grabbed my hips and picked me up effortlessly. "You wouldn't want to rip your dress, would you?"

"Guess not," I mumbled. I looked over at Sora, hoping I could get bravery from him.

"Riku, get your hands off my little sister before I dismember you." When it comes to threatening people, Sora is only serious when it involves me. Riku let go, knowing fully well that Sora wasn't joking.

"Sora! Riku!" Kairi rushed forward, stopping when she saw me. "Sara?"

I love it when they roll out the red carpet of welcome for me. I waved meekly and stared at my feet.

More people equals more difficulty breathing.

"Kairi! Sora! Riku!" And Selphie ran forward (completely ignoring me). The dock was beginning to get a little crowded.

In… Out… In… Out… I silently coached myself through breathing as my skin started getting clammy. Inhale… Hold it… Hold it… Exhale…

All the halfhearted coping skills my therapist and I worked on completely dissolved into thin air. I think I'm supposed to challenge my comfort zone. Yeah, forget that.

"I'll be in the tallest tree I can find," I whispered to Sora, inching around the girls and walking as fast as I could toward the ladder to the tree house. I ascended it with ease, impatiently walking the winding trail up to the little hut. I stepped onto the milk box, then the window sill, and then climbed onto the roof. Within seconds, I was scrabbling up the branches.

I've always loved trees. I've been climbing them since I was four. Granted, back then my definition of climbing was hug the trunk, but it's the thought that counts. Nobody was as good at climbing as I was. That was the one title that nobody could take away from me.

It's so…lonesome up here. I absolutely adore it. The smell of bitter pine sap and the tickle of ants on my legs… Nobody here but me and the insects. And the insects don't remind you that you're a pale little marshmellow with a badger face.

Oh, and Riku's severely acrophobic (and also terrified of needles). There's a reason he never goes on the scaffolding. I remember the one time he used the zipline to beat Sora in a race. He won, but he didn't stop shaking for at least three hours.

So I stayed in the tree until sunset. And when Sora came to call me down, he didn't even get that mad. Sure, he gave me the old 'you should at least _try_ to socialize sometimes' speech, but his heart wasn't into it. He was too busy running his mouth about Kairi.

I don't know what was so special about her. At least Riku _tries_ to talk to me. She just assumes I don't like her because I'm usually curled up in the fetal position whenever she comes over.

Hey, that's because Riku's _trying_ to talk to me. Maybe I should fake a seizure the next time he does. Or suggest we play 'let's catch up on our vaccinations'.

"We're going to have a movie night tonight," Sora abruptly changed the topic. "I told Riku you'd come."

"What about me pretending to be a spider monkey suggests I want to watch movies with people?"

"He was really excited about you coming."

"No he wasn't."

Sora paused, "Well, he was 'Riku excited'. You know how he is."

"How do you know he was excited? That kid has two moods; neutral and smug."

"He planned on buying Skittles and orange juice." My favorite foods in the whole world. Tempting.

"Tell him I spontaneously combusted and couldn't make it. Because I was on fire."

"He's not stupid."

"Are you sure?"

He chuckled, "Arrogant, but definitely not stupid."

"So we'll play on his ego." I bit my lip, "Tell him… I was too overwhelmed by his presense to come. That should work."

"Sara, come on. We're going to watch horror movies. I think he mentioned a slasher film."

I paused, mulling that around in my head.

"Ok, but don't expect me to talk to anyone. Or share the Skittles."

He grinned, "Yes!"

I sighed and hugged my knees, already regretting this idea.

000

"Well I'll be damned, Sara Cho graces us with her presense!" Riku announced irritatingly loudly.

"Is it bad manners if I strangle the host?" I murmured.

"Yeah, kinda." Sora replied.

"If I did, would you be my alibi?"

"'Ay, Sara!" Wakka rushed forward, "How you been?"

I shrugged. Sora (being the most fantastic twin ever) abandoned me to say hi to Kairi.

Ok, next time she's over I'm breaking out the photo albums.

"Come on, don' be like dat!" He nudged my shoulder, "It's been fo'eva!"

"Yep." Actually, it's been two weeks and three days. That doesn't qualify as infinity.

"You gotta meet Tidus. Dis guy is shorta than you!"

"Yay?" Why does everyone focus on my height?

"Yo, TIDUS!"

Pretty much everyone looked at us while Wakka waved his arms like a headless turkey. I pulled my hood up.

A kindergartener sauntered over, "Wow Sora, did you get a sex change?"

It's been half a second and I already hate this kid. New record!

"Tidus, dis is Sara. Sora's twin sista."

I waved.

"Sara, dis is Tidus."

He very rudely grabbed my hand and shook it. "Nice to meet you. Any friend of Wakka's is a friend of mine!"

But I'm not Wakka's friend. And I don't even know you.

I nodded, putting my hands in my pocket before he could tear them off.

"Ah Sara!" Riku's large hands clapped onto my shoulders. "She's a regular social butterfly, isn't she?"

"Bite me," I mumbled.

"What was that?"

I shrugged.

"No seriously, I want to know what you said."

I glanced at Sora, which usually helped when I was having trouble breathing. My palms were beginning to leak (thankfully they were safely tucked away) and I was pretty sure I'd faint if anyone else joined the conversation.

I shrugged again and stared intently at my feet. You know, I really do have nice socks on today…

"So, how're you doing Sara?"

I shrugged.

"Can you do anything besides shrug?"

I nodded.

"Riku, thank you _so_ much for inviting me!" Selphie skipped over, drawing Riku's attention away from me. I've never been more appreciative of that annoying little bubble of feminity in my life.

"I'm gonna get some Skittles and hide in the corner," I told the other two and headed for the snacks.

They laughed for some reason. Boys are weird.

000

I ate another Skittle as blood splashed onto the screen. Pretty much everyone around me screamed.

I offered a Skittle to Riku, who chose to sit next to me. I've been bribing him to move away (because this is supposed to be a _one person_ chair) (I don't care if the others ones are taken, he can have the floor). It hasn't worked.

"How can you be so calm?" He hissed.

I shrugged and ate the Skittle. His loss, everyone knows the purple ones are the best.

"God, you're so weird," Selphie squealed from my other side. I offered her the Skittle bowl to make her feel guilty for being such meanie. Aren't I a great person sometimes?

She accepted a handful and mumbled her thanks without looking at me. I smiled as I took it back. I am _good_.

Everyone began screaming again, completely drowning out the plot development. Come on, I _totally_ thought Cindy was the murdering cheerleader! I mean, she was the only ginger on the team! When you're the ginger in a group of blondes, you tend to get psychotic. Now I was back to square one.

I took another Skittle and chewed thoughtfully. It was Clarence (the captain of the chess team). He was the second person on my list. Sure, the killer looks female, but Clarence has a really imasculine figure. It's either him or the science teacher. My money's on Clarence.

"Oh God," Riku breathed. It was a heroin scene. He flinched as the needle sunk into Jeffery the Jock's elbow.

Please let him be the next victim. I'd kill to see how someone high reacts to painful murder at the hand of a masked madman/woman wielding a chainsaw and sulfuric acid.

Yep, there's the slasher. Coming out of the corner…

Something completely strange happened. I guess Riku was getting tired because he yawned and stretched. But for some reason he was too lazy to move his hand back, so it just rested on my shoulder.

I scooted forward so it would be easier for him to put it back.

Nope. Still there.

I stretched my spine, hoping it would slip off.

Nope.

I offered him a Skittle, which he accepted with his other hand.

Wow, that's so rich kid of him. Too lazy to move him own arm after stretching. You know what? It could just freaking stay there. I'm not going to move it for him, no matter how much he wanted me to.

Selphie stretched too, her fist knocking his hand off. I nodded my thanks and offered the bowl to her as a reward. You always have to encourage helpful behavior. I try to think of her as a puppy-in-training.

Riku huffed (temper tantrum) and crossed his arms.

Well, if he was going to throw a fit, that's his loss. I'm not giving him any more until he drops the attitude.

My jaw dropped as the next scene featured Clarence walking through the parking lot after the big chess tournament (he won first place). There was _no_ way he's the next victim. I don't care if he's walking through the lot at midnight! He's my main suspect!

"It's ok," Riku whispered in my ear, rubbing my lower back gently (and ridiculously awkwardly). "If you're scared…"

"He was _so_ the killer," I interrupted. "He can't die, he _has_ to be the guy! Who else has access to both dangerous chemicals and shop tools?"

He sighed and leaned back, "Of course. She's upset, not scared."

I scowled as the slaughterer jumped from behind Clarence's car. Ok. It's the science teacher.

Clarence began to say something that probably would've given me a clue as to what the monster's identity was, but everyone _had_ to start screeching again.

You know, some people are trying to _watch_ the movie. I knew we should've put on subtitles.

I tried to read his lips. That failed miserably. Stupid braces.

Much to my dismay, thirty minutes later the science teacher was grading papers all alone in his classroom when the lights went out.

I groaned.

"Was she your next suspect?" Riku asked.

I nodded.

"It's Clarence's girlfriend Amber. That teacher marked down her Chemistry experiment, the cheerleaders made fun of her, Jeffrey played that prank, and Clarence beat her in the preliminary round of the chess tournament."

It all came together at that moment.

"You're good." I sat back and offered him a Skittle for being smart for once.

Uh-huh, Miki (the heroine) entered the abandoned warehouse on the waterfront… And there's Amber. No freaking way.

Miki asked those pathetic '_why did you do it_' questions. Amber replied with the exact same thing Riku just said.

They fought. Miki won. Mass relief amongst the audience.

"Can we watch the Sound of Music now?" Kairi asked, still shuddering (even though she had Sora's jacket over her shoulders).

Riku nodded, and I immediately lost interest in everything. I spent the next two hours staring off into space and keeping my back against the cushion so Riku didn't get lazy again.

000

"How was the movie night?" Mom asked on the car ride home.

"Horrible," I replied, "They kept screaming every time the slasher came on screen. I couldn't hear any of the vital dialogue. And then Riku solved it, which _really_ hurt my pride."

"Uh," Sora turned in the passenger seat. "Riku's seen that movie three times already."

"That _meany-face_," I growled. "See if I ever share my Skittles again!"

Mom shook her head, "So you talked to someone besides Sora?"

"A little. Riku kept asking if I was scared, so I had to tell him the truth."

"Were you scared?"

"No, just annoyed that they killed off all my perfect suspects."

She sighed, "Of course. Sora, did you have fun?"

He grinned, "Kairi was so scared! She kept hiding her face in my shoulder!"

"I hope you shoved her off gently."

He glared at me, "I didn't shove her off. That's why a guy sits next to a girl during a horror movie, so she'll snuggle with him when she gets scared."

"No way," I shook my head, "Riku sat next to me because there weren't any seats left."

"I'm going to kill him," he mumbled. Mom laughed.

"Sara, I think Riku has a crush on you."

"Mom, have you been in the car all day? The carbon monoxide must be doing some weird things to your brain."

That made her laugh harder and Sora get angrier.

"Humor me, did he put his arm around you?"

"Not really."

"What do you _mean_ 'not really'?" Sora twisted in his seat, visibly angry.

"Well, he stretched and then he sorta left his hand on my shoulder like the lazy meanie-face he is. Thankfully, Selphie took care of that."

Mom snickered and Sora faced forward again, "He's dead. I'm going to murder him."

"Ooh," I bounced in my seat. "Use sulfuric acid and a chainsaw!"

Everyone got really quiet after that.

I swear, everyone's dumb but me.

000

I started hearing voices when I was playing Fable 2 (not _that_ violent). I was torn between giving up my master axe and equipping the legendary hammer, or adding a few augments to the axe instead.

_**Use the bewitching augment on the axe. It makes people think you're pretty.**_

I froze. Oh my G—Cthulhu. Mom was right! All these video games _have_ messed with my sanity!

Oh, and everyone knows the bewitching augment's a piece of crap.

_**Bite me.**_

You're a voice in my head. That's a little hard.

I saved my game and quit. This was very unnerving. It's not like I could tell Mom I was suddenly schizophrenic. And I couldn't tell anyone else about a voice in my head. Well, darn.

_**Calm down, I'm only here to give you a warning.**_

So warn me and get the heck out of my head already!

_**Fine. Seven days. That's all I'm giving you, figure it out yourself.**_

"Ok, maybe I will. Bitch."

"SARA! LANGUAGE!"

"Sorry Mom."

"I _knew_ all these violent video games were a bad influence on you! Next thing I know, you'll be killing people and engaging in premarital sex."

"What about premarital sex?" Riku entered the house without knocking. "Hi Mom."

"Hi Riku." She grinned. "Sora's in his room."

"Cool, thanks!" He turned to me. "Hi Sara."

I waved.

"What are you doing?"

"Practicing acupuncture. Care to be a patient?"

He was gone in a flash.

Mom sighed, "Don't be mean to him. He likes you."

"No he doesn't." I finished my orange juice and stood up to get more.

"Whatever you say," she filled my cup for me. "Just be nice, ok?"

"I'm always nice," I insisted jokingly. She just shook her head and put the cookie sheets into the oven.

"Why don't you go play with Sora and Riku?"

"I'm fourteen Mom, I don't _play_, I _hang out_.And no, because that would involve me being in the same room as them."

"But you love hanging out with Sora."

I shrugged, "He's having guy time. I don't want to interrupt that."

"What's wrong with Riku?"

I rolled my eyes, "Uh…he's an arrogant rich kid?"

A door slammed down in the hall. Mom glared at me. "He heard you."

"He shouldn't have been eavesdropping!"

"Go to your room."

"Oh my G—Cthulhu!" I finished my drink and stormed down the hall and into my room.

It's right next to Sora's room, and the walls aren't too thick. I sat down on my rocking chair and did some eavesdropping of my own.

"…_called me an arrogant rich kid!"_

"_You are an arrogant rich kid."_

"_Yeah, but she said it like it was a bad thing!"_

"_Come on, Sara has no social skills. She's just uncomfortable around other people."_

"_She doesn't have a problem with you."_

"_We're related."_

"_And she likes Selphie."_

"_No she doesn't, she's trying to train her. She's convinced Selphie's a dog."_

"_What?"_

"_Look, just don't take it personally. She's blunt. It's her thing."_

"_Why is she like that?"_

Oh G—Cthulhu… If Sora answers that, I'll kill him.

"_She's scared of social situations. It's like you and needles."_

I'm rubbing rat poison in his pillowcase. Just you watch.

I put on my headphones and blasted my walkman (yeah, I don't own an iPod, deal with it), not wanting to hear the rest of the conversation.

There's a reason I don't like people.

As I listened to jazz, I thought about the voice.

Seven days. It was giving me seven days to figure something out? Maybe I murdered someone and forgot about it, and my subconscious is trying to get me to confess!

No. That's not it. I'd remember killing someone. That just seems like an important concept. You know, like SAT vocabulary. You're not going to forget it anytime soon.

Am I psychic? Maybe some sort of natural disaster? I should call the police and tell them to keep an eye on the weather.

Wait, the last time I did that they called Mom and made her promise to keep me away from phones. Darn.

How long am I supposed to be here anyway? Maybe that's what the seven days thing is about.

Naturally, when I become a schizophrenic and have a threatening voice in my head, it warns me about my impending seven-day punishment. Man, I wish it was at least something cool, like the islands blow up or something.

The door opened and Sora stuck his head in, I held up a finger and turned off my music. "You really hurt Riku's feelings."

"You're the one who decided to kill him."

"That doesn't mean you can be mean."

"I wasn't being mean! I was talking to Mom! I thought he was in your room!"

He sighed, "Just…just don't go near him for the next few days."

"Fine by me." I reached for a book.

He just stood there, watching me ignore him. Finally, he spoke.

"What happened?"

"What happened to what?"

"What happened to you?" He sighed, "You…you've changed. Ever since Uncle Mitsuo…"

"Get out," I pointed to the door.

"Sara, you used to be popular! People loved you the way you were!"

"Get out."

"And then you shut yourself away after…"

"GET OUT!" I shrieked. Without thinking, I hurled the book at his head. He leapt back and I slammed into the door.

"I miss you," his muffled voice just didn't know when to quit. I covered my ears and slid to the floor, keeping my back to the door so it couldn't be opened.

I hugged myself and cried into my kneecaps.


	2. Of Ice Cream and Morbid Prophecies

Two

"Morning Mikoko," I greeted as one of the locals approached the counter. Also, just the person I wanted to see.

"Sara, I'll have the usual." She shivered a little, looking around. Mikoko is the island's conspiracy theorist, perfect for milking for information.

"One hazel latte with cinnamon and no whipped cream," I put her down for a toffee coffee with nutmeg and extra whipped cream, "What size?"

"Small." She winked.

"Small," I pressed large.

"That'll be sixteen munny."

She handed me a twenty, and I pulled out four of the smallest coins and her receipt. "I'm on it."

I looked around as I began squirting various ingredients into the cup. Thankfully, the only person in the house was Miss Lee, who was practically deaf.

"Hey Mikoko," I hissed, "I need your help."

"What's up?" She leaned over the table in a seemingly casual way.

"Ok, don't laugh at me. I had a voice in my head tell me that I have seven days. I don't know what it could mean; it just said 'seven days, that's all I'm giving you'."

She nodded, and I knew my faith was well placed. "How many days do you have left?"

"Six."

"Ok," she picked up one of the popsicle-stick stirrers and bent it idly. "Six days, and that's all you get. Maybe it's a warning. You might die in six days."

I froze, "I didn't think of that."

"Sara, I'd live my life to the fullest if I were you. Who knows what that voice really meant?" She accepted her drink. "It was wonderful knowing you."

"And you," I whispered. She nodded and left the house, looking at me one more time before disappearing into the summer crowd.

I stood there, staring at the elderly Miss Kim. I always figured I'd grow up and be like her. I'd live to my nineties and go to the coffee house every Sunday after church and order a muffin and cold tea.

My therapist assured me that I was going to live past the age of twenty (for the longest time I was convinced I'd burn to death on my 20th birthday), but maybe she was wrong. Maybe I'd die before I even got three-fourths of the way there!

"Hey," A familiar voice called from behind the cash register. "Arrogant rich kid in need of service here."

"Hi Riku," A mental list of things I needed to do before I died began to form. Number one; apologize to Riku. "I'm glad you're here."

"Y—you are?" His face contorted in this cute 'question mark' face.

"Yeah, I wanted to apologize for what I said. I was having a bad day, but that's no excuse. I'm sorry."

"Oh," he looked at his feet. "Uh, thanks."

"So, what can I get you?"

"You know, I've never heard you talk so much before."

"I have to talk, it's my job." I waved to Miss Kim as she left the house. I wasn't ever going to see her again. A small flicker of depression began to form in the back of my head.

"Well, I've never been here before." He leaned on the counter. "What would you recommend?"

"Uh…depends on if you like coffee or not."

"It's a coffee house, so you have to serve coffee, right?"

"We have smoothies, ice cream, tea, water, baked goodies," I pointed to the menu. "A lot of people who don't like coffee come in."

"Huh," he squinted (he's supposed to wear glasses, but he absolutely hates them). "What's Sea Salt Ice Cream? Am I reading that wrong?"

"Nope," I shrugged, "It's a new thing, but nobody's tried it yet."

"Then I'll have two."

"Two?" I punched it in. "You're daring."

He handed me thirty munny, "And arrogant. And rich."

I sighed and handed him his change (seven munny), which he dropped into the tip jar. "Thank you," I hurried into the back and opened the ice chest. I picked up two of the pristine wrapped packages and returned as quickly as I could (they were really cold).

"Thanks," he took one.

"Uh," I held out the other one.

"There's no way I'm going to eat two. That one's yours."

I frowned, "You really _are_ daring."

"You should talk more, you really _are_ funny."

"I try," I unwrapped the treat and ran my tongue over it. I think it's the thick slab of marble that separates me from everyone else. Having some sort of physical barrier makes me feel…ok.

"Hey, this is pretty good." I took a small bite. It tasted like salt, but then that melted away into the rich, sweet creaminess of the ice cream.

"I could really make a sex joke about its taste," Riku mumbled.

I covered my eyes, "Oh my G—Cthulhu, you are ridiculous!"

He grinned charmingly, "When Sora hits my age, he'll be just like me."

I smiled, picking up on the hidden joke in there.

Sora, Kairi, Riku, and I all have the same birthday. Well, Kairi doesn't know when her real birthday is, but she likes to think it's on the same day as her two best friends. And Riku's convinced he was born three hours before Sora. Kairi thinks she was born at the same time as Sora. And I (born seven minutes after Sora) was the youngest one out of all of them. Whee.

I'm telling you, every year Riku calls at four in the morning to rub it in Sora's face that he's officially two years older than him. I've never gotten a good night's sleep on my birthday.

Although, it drives the guys crazy knowing their birth stone is pink tourmaline and that they were one day away from having topaz (we were born October 31st). And that entertains me.

"And what'll happen to you on that _magical_ day?"

"I'll get my growth spurt and become ruggedly attractive, what else?" He grinned.

"Modesty? Is there any hope for that?"

"Modesty's for pretty girls who work at coffee houses on Sundays."

I rolled my eyes, "You're quite the charmer."

"Is it working?"

"Nope," I took another bite.

We stayed like that for the rest of my shift. He hung out and talked while I served locals. And by the end of the day, we were on good terms. And I was kinda attracted to him.

I was just leaving (after turning down Riku's offer to walk me home) when I remembered six days.

"Riku!" I spun around, doing the stupidest thing I've ever done ever.

I ran over to him, hugged him around the middle, and kissed his cheek. "Thanks," I whispered, disappearing into the late dusk…

000

"I couldn't find Riku _all day_!" Sora whined at dinner.

"Oh," I scratched my nose, "He was with me."

"What?" Both Mom and Sora did a double take at that.

"I thought he hated you!"

"He came to the coffee house. I apologized. We hung out and ate ice cream." I shrugged, "It's not like we're suddenly best friends or something."

"Did he hit on you? I'll kill him if he did."

"Nope," I shook my head, "It was very much casual. What did you do today?"

"Looked for Riku." He shrugged, "I was with Kairi though, and he wasn't there to tease me, so it was pretty fun."

"Ah," I took another bite.

"So, how are you?" He asked.

"Fine," I dodged the matter. I knew what he was referring to, and there was no way I wanted to get into it.

"So, you wanted to get that hoodie, right?"

I shrugged, "My paycheck still needs cashing. I'll do that tomorrow."

"Look how responsible your sister is! Why can't you be more like that?"

"Because I have social skills?"

I snorted into my orange juice, which saved him from a big lecture from Mom.

"Hey, let's do that shopping thing tomorrow."

"I just want to get my hoodie and leave," I replied. "I'm not in the mood to make a day out of it all."

"Come _on_!" He turned to Mom, "She'll end up socializing…"

000

"You know, this whole 'twin telepathy' thing would work out a lot better if you actually used it to _help_ said twin."

Sora grinned at me, "You're just upset that I won."

"I _am_ upset that you won!"

"Oh," he looked at his feet. "Ok."

"Look at how shiny the arcade is!" Selphie tugged on Riku's arm.

For some reason, I felt a little bit of anger coil up inside of me. I wanted to take my wonderful new hoodie and shove it down her throat. The only thing stopping me from doing that is the fact it was a beautiful periwinkle color (the best color in the world, and it doesn't belong down that dog's throat).

"Really? The arcade is shiny? _Really_?" I snapped, making everyone in the group bust up (except for the two of us).

Riku puffed out his chest, "Ah…I love it when woman fight over me…"

My brow furrowed, "What the heck are you on, and where can I get some?"

Everyone laughed at that (except for the two of us).

"I vaguely remember a conversation you had with Mom…" Sora mumbled, "About how people would find you funny if you spoke up more…"

"Two out of five—not including us—hate me right now. I think I'm doing _fantastic_."

"What are you two discussing so privately?" Riku cut in loudly.

"We're trying to figure out who would benefit most from a do-it-yourself hypodermic kit. Why? Are you interested?"

That shut him up _real_ fast. And got everyone laughing again.

000

"Four days," I mused, rubbing lotion into my knuckles. My knuckles are always dry, it's a little annoying. "Four days."

What to do? I've already lived my life to the fullest. I think.

How will I die? Spontaneous combustion?

I suddenly flashed to the excuse I had planned to give Riku.

How ironic.

"Sara?" Sora pounded on my door. "Riku wants you to come with us to the islet today."

I sighed and grabbed my boots. "Fine."

He opened the door and waited patiently as I buckled the straps on the sides of my lucky brown boots. That, and they were the only pair of shoes I owned. That should make them lucky, right? With a jittery sigh, I forced myself to remain positive.

"I can't stay long," I declared. "I have to do things."

"What?" He gave me a skeptical look as we bounded down the porch.

"I'm serious this time. I need to figure some stuff out!"

If I only have four days to live, I really shouldn't be wasting all this time with Riku. Seriously, you give him _one_ hug and he starts getting clingy.

Most kids our age would be scared out of our minds at the idea of running through the streets early in the morning. To us, it just felt like a summer Tuesday.

I hopped into the boat first, taking my usual seat at the bow. Sora jumped in after me, fumbling with the oars while I undid the knot. That's what tiny hands are good for, piano fingers just get in the way.

"So, what's up with you and Riku?" He asked innocently.

"Uh…we both officially like the same ice cream?"

"Sara."

"What?"

"Tell me the truth."

I hate twin telepathy.

"There's nothing going on." I assured him truthfully. I mean, we weren't official or anything. Just shameless flirting in private.

Suddenly it occurred to me. Riku never did anything when Sora was looking. Helping me out of the boat, Sora's back was turned. Putting his arm around me (I Googled it, turns out that's a flirtation trick), that was in a dark room. Verbally flirting with me, at my work with my brother far out of sight.

Sora was the reason we'd never actually get anywhere.

"What's up?"

Twin telepathy must've cued him in on my sudden bitterness toward him. Thanks to him, I'm always going to be lonely. I'm never going to get a boyfriend. Riku will never love me, thanks to my brother.

"Nothing," I smiled, then stared out in the water. "Absolutely nothing."

If Sora wasn't going to let me have Riku, I'm not going to let him have Kairi…

000

Riku's brilliant plan was to build a raft off of the planet. Kairi and I were in charge of looking pretty while the sexist jerks drew blueprints.

We sat on the dock idly.

"I wanted to thank you," I swallowed my fear. "So…thank you."

Kairi looked up, her brow furrowed, "What for?"

"Well, life's been hard for Sora ever since he," I bit my lip, "_You know_."

"No, I don't know."

My eyes widened and I gasped, "You don't? I knew that Riku didn't, but he didn't tell _you_?"

She shook her head, taking the bait. Oh, I was _too_ good.

"You can't tell him you know, ok?"

She nodded eagerly.

"Well," I cleared my throat. "Sora recently realized he's gay…"

000

Life's been a little awkward since I convinced Kairi that my brother had a crush on Riku. I had 'confided' in her, thanking her whole-heartedly for being such a supportive friend to Sora.

As luck would have it, Sora was never more kind to me. I think he suspected that I screwed him over, so he was being manipulative.

Well, if I can't be happy, neither can he. That thought squelched the guilt. I only have four days (now three) to live, and it's _his_ fault I only made out with Riku once.

"So Sara, you excited?" Said crush plopped down beside me. I stared out at the sunset from my seat at the base of the paopu tree.

"I'm not going."

"What?" He leapt to his feet. "No!"

"Yes Riku, I'm not going."

"That's not…you said…I thought…"

"I never said I would go," I pulled my knees to my chin. "And I'm not. You guys have fun."

"What's wrong Sara?" He murmured, his sugary-sweet voice washing over me. I almost broke down. I almost told him about four days left. I felt my eyes begin to prickle. I felt the words crowd my mouth

"You never appreciate a good sunset until it's gone," I whispered.

He sighed and sat down next to me. "What's up?"

"The sky."

"Seriously Sara, what's bringing this on?"

"I just want to watch," I muttered, nodding towards the sky.

Riku groaned, "Great. Just great. I think we're actually getting somewhere and you close up on me again."

"What?" I stared at him through my hair. He was on his feet again, pacing. His bare feet kicking up sand, his tense figure blocking the view.

"Oh stop it. Just cut it out!" He ran his hands through his hair. "You're driving me insane. Every time I think you're on the same page as me, every time I think you _like_ me, you close up again. One minute you're flirty, the next you won't say more than two words to me. Sara, I don't know what's going on anymore."

"I assure you, neither do I."

"Shut up!" His fists clenched. "Stop lying. You'd have to be an idiot not to see it!"

"I can't see the sunset, if that's what you mean," I nodded toward him.

"You really are an idiot," he growled.

Ok. I don't need to take this.

"You're right," I snapped, getting to my feet. "I am an idiot. But at least I'm not the rich, Takahashi poster boy _brat_! Do me a favor Riku, leave me alone!" I spun around and stormed across the bridge.

"You don't mean that," he called.

"I don't need you!" I shouted. "I never needed you! I was perfectly fine without you getting in my head and messing everything up!"

"Oh, so _I'm_ the one messing with heads?" He stalked over to me. "Little Miss Bipolar Freak!"

"I'm not bipolar, jerk face."

"That's offensive," he rolled his eyes. "I'd rather be a [he held up finger quotes] 'jerk face' than a manipulative little…" And then he said it. That five letter word that rhymes with 'witch'.

At that, I turned and left. If he had apologized, I'd have ignored it. If he had followed me, I'd have hit him. If he did anything besides gape at me, I'd have rejected it. But that's all he did. He just watched me stomp down to the dock.

And then I realized why that smarmy brat wouldn't admit he was wrong.

There was only one boat.

Riku was supposed to take me home. I don't know how to row.

He expected me to just waltz on back to him, beg for forgiveness, admit that _I_ was wrong, and even kiss up to that jerk face. Maybe even agree to go along on his stupid raft.

Forget that.

I jumped into the ocean.


	3. Wake Up

Three

It's truly astounding, the things you can do if you're angry enough. I mulled this over in my head as I wearily limped home. I swam all the way to shore, losing one shoe and one sock. And possibly every calorie I had consumed within the last 72 hours.

With a mucus-encrusted cough, I opened the door. "Can I get some Airborne please?"

"Oh my…"

"I'm fine Mom," I replied monotonously, "I just need a shower. And some Airborne."

"Did it start raining?"

"Nope," I peeled off my dripping shoe (great, more shopping). "I just got wet."

"You and Riku went swimming?"

"Nope," I tugged off my new hoodie (I am going to KILL Riku), "Just me. I went swimming."

"Is everything ok?"

"Of course," I paused, "Why wouldn't it be?"

At that moment, our eyes met. The rift between mother and daughter lit up. Nobody wanted a kid who couldn't even pretend to be serious. Nobody wanted a kid who couldn't even open their mouth around a stranger. Nobody wanted a kid who used to be everything, but now has nothing but a dry mouth and social disorders.

Nobody wanted me.

"Ok," She looked up at the corner of the room. I followed her gaze.

My fifth-grade school picture. Framed on the top of the bookshelf, gathering dust. My younger self grinned her braces smile like she had nothing in the world to care for. I used to be another Sora. I used to have it all.

"Brace face," I murmured, leaving the room.

000

I can tell that I'm dreaming because it's always the same thing. Fire, screams, me running, smoke…my uncle. The sad thing is it scares me every time.

I woke up in a cold sweat, but not on my hammock. I was on the floor of a clean, octagonal room with mirrors on every wall, and the floor/ceiling was pure light (my eyes…burn…). My head spun as I looked at the hundreds and hundreds of me. And whenever I looked at one, they'd look at me back. Well, except for the ones behind the eight initial me's. Sheesh, this was weird.

"H—hello?" I whispered, scared out of my mind. I rubbed my glistening arm on my sleep pants, trying to get rid of the nervous sweat smell. I need a shower like nobody's business. "Hi… Can someone help me out of here?"

That's the way dreams work, you voice what you want done and it happens. Unless they're memories. Well, some memories. I mean, I had nightmares after seeing Legion. All I could see was the ice cream man with his wide and gaping mouth screaming and scuttling towards me like a spider. And then I commanded a unicorn to stomp on him and impale him or something. I ended up walking into the diner while they fought violently and drank a Captain Crunch milkshake. I guess that only works when it isn't something you've experienced.

Well, this wasn't a memory of any kind. It wasn't even an extension of one (like that one sex dream) (I've only had one, and I'm very ashamed of it) (you can probably guess who it was with). It was like I walked into TLC's What Not to Wear.

"Stacy? Clinton?" I looked around, musing at the strangeness of their names. These things (What Not to Wear and Legion) were ancient artifacts from early humans. They look like normal humans, only with brown eyes. Those are _so _weird. But I had to hand it to them, for all their funky names and abnormal clothes (for example, pre-ripped jeans. Why would you make a perfect pair of jeans and then slash holes in them? They started selling them here, and I only bought a pair because they were cheap and comfortable), they could really scare the crap out of you with their imaginations.

"You're so stupid. I just want to cry when I look at you," My voice echoed through the room.

"Hey," I whined, "That's not very nice!"

And every single face in the mirror turned towards me, even the reflections that were behind the other reflections. Instead of looking ahead, they all twisted their necks and looked at me with blank eyes. My eyes.

"Uh," I shifted, feeling that same panic I get when I stand in front of a class for a report. "Carry on. Sorry if I offended you. Please don't look at me."

"Why?" The Sara directly in front of me asked. "Can't stand to look at yourself? Do you see something that nobody else does?" She stepped out of the mirror, officially making this into a nightmare.

I stumbled back, hitting a mirror. The reflections didn't move, just continued to stare at me. Well, except the mirror that the reflection had walked out of, it was blank. Just a shiny silver wall.

"What do you hide Sara?" My reflection moved closer.

"If your jaw drops more than physically possible, I'm calling a unicorn to kill you."

"Violent, aren't we?" The not-me smiled hollowly, "Isn't that a sign of mental instability? Are you mentally unstable?"

"No, I'm having a nightmare. There's a difference."

She sighed, "You still don't see." She turned around; staring at the mirror she just left. "Sara, I'm going to do you a favor. You're going to become powerful, more powerful than you've ever imagined. Just like those heroes in those horrid video games you play, only better. Sara," she glanced back, "I'm going to awaken you."

Without another sound, she faced forward and walked through her mirror. The surface rippled for an instant, then returned to its normal state. All of the mirrors became normal.

I looked around, and the thousands of reflections copied my every movement, the way they're supposed to.

This was such a stupid idea, but I walked into the mirror that the talking reflection came out of.

I tripped on the teeny bit of wall between the mirror/secret doorway and the floor. "Why me?" I mumbled, sprawled on solid white linoleum.

"So full of self-pity," My voice echoed mockingly, "We'll have to fix that."

I gritted my teeth, getting to my feet. I walked down the completely white hallway. As I traveled, I tried to remember if I ate anything before I went to sleep. Most importantly, did I eat anything my brother made? That would give me Twilight Zone memories.

No, tonight was my turn to make dinner.

I entered another room of mirrors, but none of the reflections were mine.

"The road ahead of you is full of pain and hardship." I heard the echo again. "None of this is your fault; these are the people to blame."

I glanced around at all the unfamiliar faces, a woman with her hair twisted up into horns (weird), a man with a mullet-like hairdo wearing a lab coat, an extremely large and fat dog thing...and then I saw him.

"Uh, there's a typo," I pointed to Riku. "He's annoying, but not exactly a diabolical criminal mastermind."

"Riku Takahashi, he's responsible for quite a bit of trouble. He'll destroy your home, hurt your friends, and ultimately lose his own soul."

"I don't think so," I replied, watching his reflection cross his arms and smirk at me arrogantly. I sighed; even the imaginary mirror caught his typical rich-kid attitude. "But it doesn't matter, does it?"

"Actually," the reflection of myself stepped out from behind me. "I'm going to give you a gift. You can redeem one of these people."

"Only one?"

She shrugged, "I'm not feeling merciful."

"Fine," I pointed to Riku, "If I don't pick him, my brother will kill me. They're best friends."

"And you have a crush on him."

"I do not!"

She smirked, "What about the New Year Party?"

"I confused apple cider with champagne and got drunk, it's an honest mistake!"

"You slipped him tongue and gave him an erect…"

"WE'RE _SO_ DONE WITH THIS TOPIC!"

"Whatever," she shrugged. "You pick the pretty boy?"

"Yeah."

His mirror shattered, but the shards melted like ice when they hit the floor. And there was another doorway.

"Am I going to get cut walking on that?" I asked my reflection.

She wasn't there anymore.

"Of course," I sighed and inched out slowly. I stepped over the wall this time, and found myself in a completely black room.

"Ok, I'm done." I turned around, only to find my door gone.

"There's no going back." I spun, facing my reflection again.

"Actually, I can just pinch myself and…"

She smiled, "You want to believe this is a dream, don't you? In a way, I guess it is. However, I was referring to the choices you make. You must always consider wisely, every step causes a ripple effect. And there's no going back, ever. So look forward, keep your eyes on the road you're walking on, not the steps you've taken. And don't dabble in 'what if's."

"Ok, cool." I looked around, "I take it there's a point to this."

"Yes."

"So…what is it?"

She held a finger to her lips. "That answer will come sometime soon, and perhaps it will never be truly answered. It depends on what you do. I will let you know this, you're different. You have been chosen for a task that is bigger than you can possibly fathom."

"I have to clean my entire house?"

She scowled, "Very funny. Let's just get down to business." She stepped forward. "Punch me."

"What?"

"Punch me."

"No," I shook my head.

"Punch me, or I'll punch you." She crossed her arms.

I slammed my fist into her shoulder. "There, satisfied?"

"Not at all," her eyes narrowed. "You allowed me to control what you did. All it took was a half-assed threat, and you did what somebody else wanted, although you didn't want to."

"So what? You were the one who wanted me to punch you."

"Never compromise on your beliefs. If you want to do something, do it. If you don't want to, don't. Never let someone else pull the strings. Life will rely on your choices, follow your heart. It'll save us all."

"What the heck are you talking about?"

"Sara, you don't have to open your eyes yet. But one day the galaxy will rely on you, and I hope you'll be able to accept yourself then."

I blinked, and I was back in the first room. I stared at the girl in front of me.

She was average, with a pale face and sparkling cerulean eyes. She wasn't tall, or skinny. I examined myself, tugging on one of my chocolate-brown curls idly.

"There's no way I can save a galaxy," I murmured.

The entire room shattered, and I fell. Shards of glass sliced into my face and hands as I went, drawing little streams of blood. I stared at the little ruby droplets suspended in front of me incredulously.

"**Perhaps you can't save the galaxy,**" the voice boomed. "**Perhaps you're the wrong person for the job. However, if you don't try, we'll all die in the end…**"

"**Sara, you're going to be on your own very soon. Are you going to sink or swim?**"

My head slammed against the wooden floor, sending a shockwave of soreness through my brain. I groaned, pushing myself up a little.

My hammock bed swung gently, and my blanket was still on my back. I rubbed my temples and crawled back into bed. I knew it was a dream.

Something so ridiculous could only be a dream.

000

Riku never apologizes. He does something that shows his remorse, but the words "I'm sorry" will never come from those soft, pillow lips.

Stop it! I smacked myself on the side of the head.

"Don't do that!" He snapped, pulling my hand away. "I'm trying to teach you how to punch _someone_, not yourself!"

Yeah. The first thing Riku did when we got here (which I was completely against in the first place) was hand Sora and Kairi a list of materials. Then he dragged me up to the paopu tree and announced that he was going to teach me to throw a punch just in case if ever I get offended. Lest I didn't get it, he paused pointedly.

Yep. He felt bad about calling me that.

"Ok, again." He stood here, legs apart, arms at his side. "Punch me."

We've been doing this for an hour. Just him standing there and commanding me to hit him.

Best.

Day.

EVER.

I slammed my fist into his stomach. He grunted (and I'm pretty sure his eye twitched), and stepped back.

"Better, but you keep cocking your wrist." He (for the millionth time) corrected my wrist posture. "Remain straight. You'll do more damage to yourself if you keep that up." He took a step back. "Again."

Did I mention this is the best day ever?

Half an hour of me hitting him to my heart's content, and him correcting my spine posture, my wrist motion, my foot position, my arm movement. Even so, it never stopped being fun.

Best day ever. Even though it was my second-to-last day of life.

Later, after Riku decided to be responsible and get his share of materials, I sat on the dock and watched the sunset. Normally I watch near my tree (I don't care what Riku thinks, it's _my_ tree), but the terrific trio took my spot and I'd hate to interrupt their 'special bonding time'.

Just when the spurts of orange and pink were stretching out to their crescendo, I noticed something.

My hand hurt. And not just my knuckles (Riku gets his revenge), but my palms. I opened my fingers.

One scratch.

_The entire room shattered, and I fell. Shards of glass sliced into my face and hands as I went, drawing little streams of blood. I stared at the little ruby droplets suspended in front of me incredulously._

One shard of glass got my palm. Right across, diagonal pointing down. I stared at that brown pucker in absolute mystification.

"It wasn't a dream?"

No. There's a good reason for this. Maybe during your swim yesterday, when you had to drag yourself to shore. Maybe you got cut on a bit of bottle or something. Yeah. Reasonable explanation.

I sighed, part of me wishing this wasn't just a delusion. I don't even have a real name, just something Mom made up that went well with 'Sora'. I've been in the shadows of my brother's glory for far too long. Yet I wasn't going anywhere.

In that dream, everything seemed to come together. Like I could become something else. Like someone would actually be stupid enough to rely on me for something.

Like I could be whole again.

I looked up just in time to see fingers of red grasping at the black silk sky, trying to grab that last bit of life, hoping to pull itself back up before it dissolved into nothing.

Is that what's going to happen to me? I'm just going to go like that, hands outstretched, reaching for something I'll never get?

Two days.

000

On my last day of life, I bought a new pair of boots. Aren't I exciting?

I always imagined that I'd have some sort of epic last day. Epic thoughts. Epic last words.

Instead, all I could think of was that one Invader Zim episode where a ball hit Zim and he shouts "AH! MY SPIDDLEY SPOOCH!"

Over and over. I began to comprehend said spiddley spooch, wondering if that was the alien equivalent of a kidney.

And I thought of the day that changed everything for me…

_I was with my Uncle Mitsuo for the day. According to Sora, Dad was a meanie-face who divorced Mom. So we were like those kids that Riku always makes fun of. Riku would never make fun of Sora. Maybe me, but not Sora._

_Today was Sora's big swim meet. He and Riku were so excited, but we didn't have enough money for both Mom and I to go. And Riku's parents weren't coming. They never went to anything that involved Riku._

"_You go Naomi," Uncle Mitsuo grinned and ruffled my hair. "We'll go shopping."_

_I grinned up at him._

"_Ok, be good. And Uncle Mitsuo's paying, so make sure you keep everything within a reasonable price range."_

"_Naomi, I only have one niece! Let me spoil her!"_

_I laughed and hugged my mom, and my brother. "Good luck out there, make Riku cry."_

"_Hey!"_

_I giggled and gave Riku a hug too, "Don't cry too hard when Sora kicks your butt."_

_He refused to hug back, "Whatever."_

_We all left at the same time. Mom and the boys got into their car (the boys were already planning their victory ice cream sundaes), and I got shotgun with Uncle Mitsuo. I never get shotgun when Sora's around._

"_So kiddo, you need a new pair of shoes, right?"_

_I nodded, looking at my tattered, too tight sneakers._

"_And I heard the guys talking about ice cream. We need some of that too, right?"_

_I grinned._

_Mom usually takes us to the local thrift store for clothes. Uncle Mitsuo drove me to the Takahashi four-story mall._

_Yeah, Riku's family owns a mall. Along with basically everything else on the island._

"_Wow!" In the store window was the coolest pair of shoes I've ever seen. They were milk-chocolate brown boots with straps on the side. According to the mannequin, it would've gone up to my knees._

"_I don't think they're in your size sweetie." He tousled my hair fondly._

"_Too bad," I glanced at my feet again._

"_Although," he mused, "They'd last a while. And you'd grow. It wouldn't hurt to try them on…"_

"_YES!" I clapped my hands gleefully. The smallest size available was still two sizes too big, but Uncle Mitsuo insisted that I'd grow into them. He handed me the bag._

"_Come on, you'll need running shoes too."_

_I was jokingly trying on a pair of way too expensive Converse when the fire started. I never knew what happened exactly. The police man investigating said he was trying to protest. Another thought it was a terrorist attack._

_One thing was agreed, that man locked those doors on purpose._

_I laughed and rotated my feet, admiring the periwinkle canvas. I liked purple a lot more, but periwinkle was Uncle Mitsuo's favorite color._

"_Those certainly are nice."_

"_We can get some white shoes and dye them," I suggested. He beamed._

_He could always do that. His citrine eyes would melt away anything bothering me, his black hair and tanned skin making the deep orange pop out at you. They would say 'look at me, everything's going to be a-ok'._

_I was walking around the store in the comfy shoes when the sprinklers turned on._

_Somebody ran into the store, "FIRE!"_

_Fire? I sniffed the air. I didn't smell smoke. Was the food court burning pizza again?_

_Everyone stood around, unsure of what to do. I found my Uncle, and he picked me up._

"_Everything's ok Sar-Bear," he bounced me a little. I hugged him anyway. I was ten, but he was so big that it didn't even take an eye blink for him to lift me._

_Everything happened so fast. The air became black and thick; the room began to heat up. The sales lady screamed._

_That shrill noise isn't what needled into my brain, but the sudden abrupt stop when she fell in the crowd._

_The bitter, metallic scent of blood coupled with the stinging thickness of smoke made the world swirl. I could hear my Uncle telling me to stay calm, but I didn't know what was happening. Why is everyone running so fast? Why aren't the doors opening? What's that man doing out there? What's happening?_

"_It's not opening!"_

"_IT'S NOT OPENING!"_

"_We're all going to die!"_

"_We're all going to __**DIE**__!"_

_A single sound rose up from the crowd. All the people pressed against those "chic" metal doors added to that one sound. It floated in the air. A chorus. A single, synchronized wail. My ears gave out with a brittle pop, and I began to cough._

_I think it's my hacking that kicked Uncle Mitsuo into gear. He turned around and fought through the crowd. Then he burst into the men's restroom._

_He put me down, knocking over the trashcan and pulling it over to the window. He stood on it, the "chic" metal groaning under his muscular stature. He looked down at me._

"_I love you," he slammed his elbow into the glass, shattering it effortlessly. "You know that?"_

_I nodded meekly, "Uncle Mitsuo, what's going on?"_

"_I need you to do me a favor," he scooped me up again, kissing my nose. "You're my little monkey, right?"_

_I grinned, nodding again._

"_Well, monkeys climb." He reached through the small square and pulled out a branch. "My monkey needs to climb to the middle of that tree and stay there until the police come, ok?"_

"_Can we be monkeys together?"_

"_No sweetie," he kissed me again. "Only one monkey." He hoisted me up to the window._

"_There's glass!"_

"_Be strong, ok? Glass won't hurt you."_

"_Yes it will!"_

"_Sara, monkeys aren't hurt by glass. Are you my monkey?"_

"_Y—yes. I'm scared Uncle Mitsuo!"_

"_Go," he urged. Something in his voice told me to hurry. Something in his voice gave me strength. I grabbed the branch and wriggled out the window._

"_Look at me!" I cried gleefully. "I'm a monkey!"_

"_Shh! Quiet Sara. Nobody can see you! Monkeys can't talk or else they're taken to the zoo!"_

_So I stopped talking. I didn't want to be put in a cage. I swung like a monkey to a better branch. The first branch snapped back into place when my uncle let go._

"_I love you Sara. Don't you ever forget that."_

_I made it to the cluster of branches over the trunk, sitting comfortably. "Uncle?"_

_No answer._

"_U—Uncle Mitsuo?"_

_No answer. Just that one shriek of unity coupled with a smoke stack. Maybe he wanted me to be quiet._

_I pulled my feet to my chest and shut my eyes…_

"_Look! Up in that tree!" I woke up to find hands cradling me, and a big man in a red helmet carrying me down a ladder._

_I was on the ground, looking around. The mall was gone. There was just this big mass of twisted metal. It was all gone._

_So many people. I pushed into the crowd. "Uncle Mitsuo?"_

_A flashing light. I whimpered and pulled back. I hit a pair of knees that weren't my uncle's._

"_Little girl!" A microphone pressed forcefully against my mouth. Another floating in the air above me. More flashing lights. "Little girl!"_

"_Were you in the mall?"_

"_What happened?"_

"_Can you tell us what you know?"_

"_How did you get out?"_

"_U—Uncle Mitsuo?"_

_My firefighter was back, yanking the people away. "Get out of here you RATS! Leave the poor girl alone."_

"_Uncle Mitsuo?" He picked me up and carried me away._

"_Where's my Uncle?"_

There was this man, the man who locked the doors. He was so angry that I got out. He screamed at me as police pulled him away.

"_You're gonna die little girl! You're gonna DIE!"_

The press flocked our house for a year. Sora and I were homeschooled. He went back to the public system. I never stopped being homeschooled.

"You're gonna die little girl," I whispered. "You're gonna _die_."


	4. What It REALLY Meant

Four

"You're awfully pretty tonight," Riku hopped up onto the tree next to me.

"Thanks," I looked down at my knit, zip-up periwinkle hoodie, my sleeveless silky turquoise dress, and my new periwinkle Converse. It was symbolic.

"So, you're coming tomorrow, right? We got supplies for you."

I punched him.

"Uh—ow?" He rubbed his shoulder, "You've gotten pretty good."

"Thanks." I watched the last stretch of the sky's fingers.

"I'm taking you home again, ok?" His fingertips delicately stroked my neck, "No swimming, you don't want to ruin that dress."

"Uh…cool?"

"Yep." And we sat awkwardly and watched the sky get dark.

I waited for him to act, to get up and say something. To my surprise, he just sat there and stared up at the sky.

"Uh…we should go."

He shook his head, an eerie smile on his face. Not the usual 'I'm an arrogant jerk' smile, but an 'I'm about to blow your world' smile. "I want to show you something."

"Keep your clothes on, I can guarantee I'm not interested in seeing you without pants."

That broke the spell.

"_What_?" He leaned back, his face contorted into that question mark face again.

"Just kidding."

He rolled his eyes, "Good." He nudged me playfully, "Although I could always lose the shirt if you…"

"Don't finish that sentence."

"Aye-aye missy," he saluted.

"So, how did the race with Sora go? Who's the captain again?"

Sora had developed a new tactic for racing. While Riku ran his usual difficult path, Sora walked along the coast. Then he made his way back up and poked the tree. He took the same way back (climbing over one of the little fences) and made it back ten seconds before Riku did.

Did I mention he was walking?

"Shut up! It was just a stupid race!"

That made me smile, and I stared up at the stars.

"We're gonna leave this planet," Riku whispered.

"You go right on ahead," I felt that small pang of melancholy, "I think I'll stay right here."

"Why?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but a crash of lightning cut me off.

"Oh my G—Cthulhu!" I leapt to my feet.

"Oh my Cthulhu?" Riku was insane. He wasn't even moving!

"What are you doing? We have to get shelter!"

"We'll be fine," he waved it off, even though the wind was bashing into me so hard that I had to grab the swaying paopu trunk (and the paopu _never_ sways) to keep from slipping.

"Are you insane?" I called over the tempest. My hair was everywhere—slicing my eyes, whipping my cheeks, yanking my scalp. Riku's just remained perfect.

I'm pretty sure that's a rich kid thing. Darn him.

He had that grin again, which officially scared the daylights out of me. If ever there was a time for profanity, it was now.

"Shit!"

Oh. That was liberating.

"Fuck this!" I was enjoying my new dirty mouth, "I'm going inside, with or without you!"

And then he was off the tree, grabbing my wrists in one hand and looping his other arm around my waist. Effortlessly, he hefted me back.

"Sara, Sara, Sara," he chided into my hair. "If you only knew what you did to me…"

"Let GO!" I strained my elbows, too weak against his iron grip. I stomped on his foot repeatedly, but he ignored that too. "Let me GO!"

Rain pelted down, and I screamed at him and tried to drop to the floor. I forced my legs to give out, hoping my weight would pull him down too.

He hefted me up and dragged me to the middle of the circle. "It's happening."

"Get your Cthulhu-damned hands OFF OF ME!"

That made him laugh. He kissed my temple gently, "Ahh…you're so funny Sara. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Become a psychotic murderer?" I yanked, succeeding in tugging Riku's hand a little. He yanked right back, pulling me too far.

"AAAAAH!" I cried out as his grip tightened. "RIKU!"

"I was devastated when you said you wouldn't come. So I did something to ensure you'd be with me."

"_Riku Takahashi, he's responsible for quite a bit of trouble. He'll destroy your home, hurt your friends, and ultimately lose his own soul."_

The storm raged all around us, swirling over the islet. I stared up at the sky, looking through the middle of a ring of wind and rain. The sky was a deep purple, so thick that the lightning appeared to be lavender.

"_He'll destroy your home…"_

He was still smiling, whispering creepy things about how much fun it was going to be.

"…_destroy your home…"_

"What did you do?" I whispered, and time began to slow. Drums pounded in my ears, drowning out the wind's howls. Drowning out the lightning's hiss.

"…**destroy your home…"**

"The door has been opened…"

"SARA!"

I snapped out of the stupor, and my surroundings sped up again. "Sora?"

Sure enough, he was clambering out of his rowboat. "SARA!"

"HELP ME!" I tried to slam my elbow into Riku's rib cage. "PLEASE!"

He stepped onto the sand, and the worst thing I've ever seen happen happened.

Little circles of black seeped out of the ground, forming fat little wingless butterflies with clawed hands.

_Clawed_ hands. Coming toward my brother.

"RUN! **RUUUUUUUUUUN**!" I shrieked. I think tears were coming out of my eyes. I don't know. I couldn't feel anything. Nothing mattered but Sora's safety.

Oh Cthulhu. Oh shit. That's what the seven days mean.

I peeked at my watch. The big hand was spinning wildly. Twelve…one…two…three…

Day zero. Game over.

In seven days, my big brother dies.

And all I can do is watch.


	5. Look! There's a Bear!

Five

"Don't cry…"

"SHUT UP YOU SICK FREAK!" I jerked against his hold (for the millionth time), "THAT'S MY BROTHER!"

Sora was attempting to defeat the creatures with his wooden sword. If this wasn't so dire, I'd find it kinda funny.

"FUCK THOSE ZOMBIE-THINGS! RUN SORA, **RUUUUUUUUUUUN**!"

I think it was the profanity that snapped his rear into gear. He barreled through the crowd of zombies and into the shack. My legs gave and I slumped against Riku's shoulder, sobbing into his expensive (and alluring) cologne.

Of course. I still fucking crush over him, even after he becomes a sociopath.

"Sara!" Sora's voice faintly broke through the wind, but his gentle voice washed over me the way it always does. I felt myself calm down, and my frantic sobs turned into hiccups of relief. Riku let go of my hands.

I twisted out of his grip and ran to my brother.

"Sora!" I hugged him. "Oh thank Cthulhu you're alright!"

"Cthulhu?"

"I'll tell you later," I whispered. "Let's just get out of here."

"Riku!" Once again I was pulled to the center of the islet.

Dammit.

Hey, this profanity thing is awesome!

And (as my luck would have it) Riku lunged and pulled me back into a hermetically sealed grip.

Ignoring my attempts to strangle him, he reached a hand out to Sora. I was too caught up in trying to cause him as much physical harm as humanly possible (which I'll admit, wasn't actually that much) to actually listen to what he was saying. All I heard was something about never seeing Mom again.

"That's horrible! Why would you glorify something like that?"

He ignored me and held out his hand. "Come with us."

"_Us_? Speak for yourself asshole!"

One of those black circles of tar began to pool around our feet.

"Ok, Riku? You're really testing my limits now!"

And then a tentacle of tar pounced, twisting around my ankle and tugging.

"NO!" I scrabbled to hold onto Riku. The only thing that could possibly be worse than appending all of eternity with him would be to sink into that mess. To become one of those zombies that almost killed my brother.

The tar began to ooze up my leg, and another tendril sprang at me. More strength was focused on pulling me down.

"HELP!" I slipped my arms under Riku's, looping them back up and clutching his shoulders. I was never good at pull-ups (and I was in that position now, well, if we pretend that Riku's a pull-up bar), but there was no way I was going to let that thing take me.

"Come with us…"

"WOULD YOU STOP _SAYING_ THAT?" My lungs stopped working, turning into leather. I gasped for air, fighting to get to the surface of the pond. What pond? I'm in a pond?

A well. There's a well.

No. No there isn't. What's going on?

Riku's cologne was so strong. The smell wrapped around my head and smothered out the last of the air. I choked.

"Let her go! She's having an attack…" Sora's voice faded.

Water. I was at the bottom. Need to get to the top. Going to drown.

There's a bear! RUN! Run from the bear!

No. Fight. Stay and fight that thing.

No. Run.

No, don't be a sissy. FIGHT!

RUN!

Fight!

Run!

Fight!

Run!

Fight!

Run!

Fight!

Run!

Fight!

Run!

Fight!

Run!

Fight!

Run!

Fight!

Run!

I was being sucked into the whirlpool.

No. Not water. Not a bear. Where am I? What's happening? Stop it!

"Stop it," I whispered to the water. The water will listen. Not quite sure about the bear, but the water's nice.

Ugh, that scent.

Sweat. Or is that rain? What's sliding down my cheeks like that? Blood? Sweat? Rain?

No. Nonononononononooooooooo. No.

Tears.

Why am I crying? Am I crying? Are my eyes bleeding?

Can't…breathe…can't…think…can't…move…can't…hold…on…

And then the whirlpool sucked me in, and I let go of the pull-up bar. I slipped under the sand, resting in my final place of darkness.

Darkness.


	6. Day Zero

Six

"Sara!" I felt someone shaking me.

"Five more minutes," I grumbled, it felt like seven o'clock on a Saturday morning. You _never _get up at seven on a Saturday morning.

"_Sara_!"

With a bitter sigh, I opened my eyes.

And immediately wished I had kept them shut. "Oh my Cthulhu."

I was on a floating patch of land. All around me were other floating patches of land. That's it. Blue sky and floating patches of land.

"Ok, that's it," I shoved Riku off of me, "I'm done."

"Done with what? Do you know where we are?"

"You got us into this mess. That's really all I care about right now." I pouted, brushing sand off of my jacket. "This is fucking crazy." I paused. "No, _you're _fucking crazy!"

"Sara…" He trailed off when he saw the look on my face.

The muscles in my back began to tense to the point of pain. That usually happens before a spelling test, which meant this was equally bad for my anxiety.

"Riku, we have to go."

"Sara, do you realize where we are?" His entire face was all sunshine and lollipops. "We're on another planet!"

"Good for you, throw a party, settle down, get married, have kids. Whatever!" I gave him a shove, "I wanna go home!"

"Sara, this is another _planet_! We made it, and we didn't even need that raft!" Then the dickwad had the nerve to laugh. He grinned, he hugged me, and he _laughed_.

I shoved him again. "I don't care. What the hell do I care about some other planet? What the fuck is up with you and other planets anyway? Are you trying to find a place where nobody sees you as the Takahashi brat?" I swiped away a tear furiously, "I want to go home! I want to be with Mom and Sora and my cat. I want to worry about stupid things like a rip in my hem or the New Year Party!" I sighed and hugged myself, staring out at the expanse of blue sky.

"I want to think about dumb things like you and me actually becoming something and how it would work out."

"Sara, it's going to be ok." He stepped forward, and I stepped back.

"That's just it Riku!" I threw my hands in the air, "It's _not_ going to be ok! Not for me! I'm not _like_ you and Sora and Kairi. I don't like leaving my home. I'm happy with what's been given to me! I don't want more. I don't want adventure. I don't want change. I want _my_ life. I want my home and my cat and my family and my stupid antisocial-anxiety problems! Everything isn't ok."

I stepped back again, shaking the tears out of my eyes. "It's not ok. It wasn't ok, it isn't ok, _it isn't going to be ok_!" I took another step away from him.

"Sara," his eyes widened. He reached out. "Don't move."

I lost it.

"Or what?" I shrieked. "Something else is going to happen? Zombies will spurt out of the ground and eat me? I'll be trapped in tar? I'll wind up in the middle of fucking _nowhere_? Compared to what's already happened, there's no way this could get any worse."

"Sara, I'm serious! Don't take a damn step!"

"Or what?" I did it just to spite him. "What else can you possibly think of that can make this worse? This isn't going to be ok in any way shape or form!"

"_SARA_!" He lunged forward.

"_WHAT_?" I took one more step backwards.

Suddenly I realized why I wasn't supposed to move. The patch of floating land was made of rock and sand, and I had reached the edge. I slipped.

I reached for the edge as I fell, but the thick layer of sand worked against me. My fingers sifted through the fine dust, and then I was holding onto air.

The last thing I saw was Riku, arm outstretched, screaming my name.

Then I broke through a layer of cloud. I squealed at the frigidness, trying to rub myself off. My hair was everywhere, and when I finally managed to wrestle it out of my eyes, all I could see was the sky.

I don't think it was the falling that made my body clench with fear, but the knowledge that there wasn't anything underneath me.

I was going to fall until I starved to death.

I peered at my watch.

12:01.

Day zero.

"_NO_!"


	7. The Academy Begins

Seven

**FUCK! What the hell are you doing? You can't die yet!**

And then I was in a tub full of too hot water. I was starting to get sick of all this waking up. Especially when I should be dead. Clinically speaking (obviously, or I wouldn't be thinking this).

"How's it going champ?" A sarcastic (and kinda familiar) voice broke into my paralleled thoughts, "I must say, I'm impressed. You fell straight into the unknown with minimal screaming. Much better than Ava, and she was pretty damn amazing."

"Hello?" It was too hard to see with all the steam. I used one of my severely wrinkled hands to wipe sweat and sticky hair off my brow.

"Hello yourself," I stepped into my line of sight.

Make that a mirror image of myself. A fake-me walked into my vision, splitting the smokestacks of vapor. Was it the reflection from my dream?

The other me held up a hand, "Look, every single Gatekeeper flipped the fuck out at this point. So keep your trap shut and listen up. You're the Gatekeeper. I'm the gate that you're keeping. Yeah, I look like you now, but I'm just an image. I can't really move around, but I'm conscious. I have feelings too."

"Uh…"

"I'M NOT DONE YET!" She screeched (it was like I stole her wallet or something).

I held up my hands submissively, too confused to argue.

She grinned, "Wow, you're the 'strong and silent' type, huh? I have no problem with that."

"I'm not really strong actually…"

"SHUT UP!"

Once again, I surrendered.

"Anyhoo, you're part of an extremely old line of warriors." She sighed, "Don't bother giving me the history of your accountant ancestors—this isn't hereditary. You were born conveniently at the same time the last Gatekeeper died. Think of it as winning the genetic lottery and only getting fifteen dollars.

"So, to put it simply, you're a little premature. I usually wait until you're eighteen; fake a high-profile death, and then you come to live with me. However, we ran into a little problem. That's actually how the last Gatekeeper died, may she rest in peace. So I had to utilize you ASAP, which is now. So you have to kinda save me from a bunch of bad people who want to harvest all the power I have stored, which you can totally help yourself to anytime you need a pick-me-up. It's an emergency, so we need to get you all trained and whatnot ASAP, which means ten minutes from now you're entering a semi-ancient, very secret academy where you'll learn how to be the perfect assassin/bodyguard/fighter/whatever. It's not really my style, but you seem like the kind of person who, after toughening up, would rather enjoy having some very open options. You know; knives, archery, brass knuckles…fun stuff like that."

"I've never killed before…"

"MY GOD, DO YOU EVER SHUT UP?"

"WOULD YOU STOP SCREAMING AT ME? THIS IS HARDLY HELPING MY ONCOMING ANXIETY ATTACK!"

She stared at me in surprise. "Ok, I can't wait to stick it to those bastards. You'll give them a run for their money."

"Ok, I have questions. I will scream them if you interrupt me." I met her gaze steadily. "One, who are you?"

"I'm the physical incarnation of the realm-powerhouse called Kingdom Hearts. Electra called me Janice, for the ancient two-faced god. So call me Janice."

"Alright, who are the people I'm supposed to kill."

"Well," She pulled a stool from the corner of the room, sitting on it casually. "There's a pretty big list actually. There's this group of evil guys—they don't have an official name so I've dubbed them the 'League of Extraordinary Evil'. They're led by this evil bitch Maleficent, who's actually looking for a prospective apprentice in your little boyfriend."

"Riku? We're not dating!" I sighed, "He's just my stalker."

"The creepy rich kid who royally messed up your home sweet island? Yup, that's the one." She sighs, "Man, that witch is manipulative. I'd be shocked if he could resist the temptation. That, and he seems like a fairly easy thing to please. He likes power, adventure, his friends, and you. Seeing as you thoroughly convinced him that you're dead, he's going to go crazy over the other three."

"Well, it's a good thing you don't know him like I do," I assured her. "He's not going to become a bad guy. Especially not over me."

"If you say so," she was clearly not convinced. Oh well, she'd come around when she realized what Riku is truly like. An annoying little prick with strange ethical views.

"So, out of curiosity, why the hell am I supposed to kill people? What did they ever do to me? I have nothing to do with your crazy vendetta."

Janice shrugged, "Well, at least you put it politely. I think the last one threw something at me and told me to go to hell. She was a feisty thing."

"Answer me."

"Fine," she rolled her eyes. "It all started a long time ago. Longer than you have record of. This is the time when only stories can spread the word." She leaned back, "This was even before me. And I'm pretty damn old. I'm pushing 300,000 years."

"Just skip the history lesson and get to the part about me."

"That's just it; the history is part of you. You see, long ago there was only one planet. Earth. It had all the habitats and seasons and animals that are exclusive to certain planets now. Like seagulls. You can only find those winged rodents on your islands, but those little bastards used to be everywhere. So, all the men and women on the planet began to corrupt. Society began to crumble to the sheer, unadulterated evil. Those adults that were still pure of heart were executed for stupid reasons. Soon, there wasn't even enough good to fill a thimble.

"The planet was swallowed by darkness. Like a candle, life just flickered and blew out." She curled up her hand into a fist and spread out her fingers quickly, probably to make some sort of point

"But that wasn't the end; it was the beginning in fact. All the purity of the children accumulated enough to create me—Kingdom Hearts. At first I was just a bunch of platforms, not even a realm, although the kids considered me their palace, bless their hearts. But they were so scared, and they needed adults to show them the way."

"This doesn't have anything to do with me."

Janice ignored me, "The smallest girl, Emer, stepped forward. In her little stuttering voice, she told them 'we have to rebuild'. I don't even know how she knew that word, but she always did seem to have all the answers. So, they learned to harness their purity to create small, individual planets. But that wasn't enough. They wanted their parents. They wanted their homes. They wanted more.

"They turned their anger onto little Emer. By this time, I was a separate dimension. So she shut herself inside of me, creating the gate that now keeps me out of your realm. There in complete isolation, she began to piece together the world that once was. If there was a threat to her home, she took care of it. I gave her everything she'd ever need." Janice stared into space. "I loved her. She was just perfect."

"I'm not Emer."

"Damn straight, she'd at least listen for longer than three minutes."

"Where do I come in?"

"I'm getting there!" She cleared her throat, "Emer died."

"Duh, this was 300,000 years ago."

"SHUT UP!"

"Where do I come in?"

"The moment she died, a girl was born, Celeste. She became the next Gatekeeper."

"Why?"

"Well…uhm…it's like this…" She trailed off. "Because that's just how magic works!"

Before I could ask another question, she went off again. Whee, boring tangents…

"She ended up shutting herself inside me too, devoting her life to repairing Earth. So blah, blah, blah, a whole hell of a lot of Gatekeepers later Ava was born. By this time, people began to discover the power that was just beyond the veil of reality. People got greedy and wanted it. All these scientists figured out a way to tap into me. I wasn't meant for that, so my foundations began to crumble. Then Ava was killed and you were born. So you have to clean up this mess and then fix Earth."

"Why?"

"Because it's your destiny. Only you can do this."

"Why?"

"Because you were born, that's why." She crossed her arms, "Only you have the power to fix things. You're the only one who can step inside of me and not become corrupted after time passes."

"How does that work?"

"Magic won't work on you. You can use magic, but you're completely resistant to it. So you can be surrounded by large concentrations of magic and not feel a thing. That's what keeps you relatively sane and pure, or as pure as you can be." She put her hands in her lap, "The end. You have a big mess that needs cleaning up, and now's as good a time as any to get started. Your schooling starts now."

"I need a towel; my skin is starting to get disgusting."

Janice nodded, picking up the stool and opening the door. "Towel!"

"Don't be rude!"

"Who are you, my mother? I'm old enough to be your crumbly great times-a-billion grandmother."

And that became the beginning of a long, high-maintenance, and deep friendship between Janice and me.

How's that for social skills?

000

The Academy (I had no other name for it) was hell. I figured this out on my first day.

Sensei yelled at me so much that I started to cry. Suddenly I was on the floor and I couldn't feel the left side of my face.

_You're weak. So weak._

When I looked in the mirror there was a red handprint across my face.

At that moment, I decided to be as difficult as possible.

That pretty much failed when I realized they believed in public floggings.

_The more you fight it, the worse it's gonna get._

It was a little like marriage. In sickness and in health, I got the fuck up, ran three miles, went to a few two hour classes, had my one daily meal, and went right back to running.

_Look! It's Anxiety Girl!_

_Hey Anxious, why don't you cry to your mom? Oh wait, you don't have one!_

_Get up and stop moping._

_You think I care?_

_Crying is a sign of weakness._

_I'll beat you. I'm serious._

_There's nothing I like more than stamping out the fight in pretty little rebels like you._

_Keep it up and I'm selling you to the brothel._

_Three days no meals. That should teach you a lesson._

_Nobody cares. It's time you learned that._

_Hey, looks like you've got a fever there. Why don't we cool you down?_

"No." I whispered to nobody, staring at the light under the door.

"No." I could still feel the water in my lungs. "No, no, no, no, _no_."

I slid the hunting knife out from under my mattress, the silver glinting in the hallway light. I saw a bruised face reflecting back at me.

Except the eyes. Those azure eyes whispered, "_I'm gonna survive. And when I do, you better hide. 'Coz I'm gonna kill you._"


	8. Lean, Mean, Killing Machine

Eight

There's a place in my head that I can go. While they hurt me, while they yell at me, while they mock me…I'm in my own head. I'm safe. Nobody can get me there.

It's me, on the islands, climbing a tree. I keep scrabbling up branches at my own pace, sticking my fingers in sap and letting foliage ruffle my nose. And that's it. I'm just climbing. I'm not fighting for food; I'm not screaming with pain, I'm just there. I have nothing to do, and all day to do it.

Meerkah, my number one tormentor, snatched my plate as she walked by, "Thanks Anxious."

I didn't even look up. That makes her mad. If you continue to stare at the wall.

I was done anyway. The less you eat, the less it hurts when you run later.

000

_How is she coming along?_

_Well._

_What about that Janice? What will we do about her?_

_She doesn't care for the girl. Nobody does. We speed up her training and do what we always do._

_She'll notice._

_No she won't._

_Nobody will._

000

I don't understand. They pushed me so hard. Faster Sara, faster. You're not putting enough effort into it. Go Sara, _go_!

That night, I was so weak that I couldn't get out of bed. Well, the straw cushions that I called a bed anyway. I stared up at the ceiling, my mind too awake for sleep. "Is this it?"

"Is what it?" Janice replied from her corner of the room.

"Is this all I get for being a Gatekeeper? Just a hell of a lot of schooling and you? There's no real perks to being Gatekeeper?"

"Start doing pushups and I'll tell you."

Janice was all about pushing my limits. With an inaudible sigh (if she heard it, I'd get slapped), I rolled off my bed and forced myself to weakly push up. She chuckled, but started talking anyway.

"Well, you get to live in a designer home. Every Gatekeeper manipulated the surroundings to their pleasure. When they die, I just lock away their area and start with a clean slate. A few things will always remain the same, but you get to go crazy on décor."

"That's it?" My arms burned uncomfortably, "I get a dream home?"

"And a weapon," she continued. "They're called Keyblades. There's one for every Gatekeeper in existence. The blade itself molds until it matches the person it belongs to."

"I have a weapon that looks like me?" They shook. I could hardly keep myself off the ground.

"No, you have a blade that reflects the inner you. The blade also serves as a key to anything…all you do is point at a door or lock you want opened, and it will open."

"Well," I completed another shaky three before pausing, "I could figure out a use for that. When do I get it?"

Janice cleared her throat. "Never. Well, I don't know. You're already supposed to have it, but when Ava died I began to crumble. So the Hall of Keys collapsed and I lost every single Keyblade I had stored. Even Emer's, which broke my heart."

"You're a realm, you don't have a heart."

"My figurative heart! Sheesh, I'm made of hearts and you assume I don't have one. What a bitch." She chucked a book at me. It hit me right in the middle of the shoulderblades, and I collapsed.

It didn't matter how hard she hit me, I didn't move until morning.

I was too busy climbing trees.

000

Suddenly, it all came together. We were group sparring, which I hated. The thought of causing someone else real pain bugged me.

Meerkah slammed my face into the rubber mat. "Come on Anxious! Why don't you start crying?"

And normally I would, but nothing came out. I just became numb to the sensation.

Then I felt something in me relax. I slammed my hands against the floor. That jolted her, and while she was unbalanced, I struck.

Bam! I slammed my elbow into her nose. Bam! Again. Bam! Bam! Bam! Until she loosened her grip.

I twisted, planting a foot on her chest and launching her with all my might. I sprang to my feet, pouncing before she even knew what was going on.

I pinned her arms to the mat with my knees, and then I went crazy.

I slammed my fist into her almond-colored face. Again. Again. Again. She tried to struggle, but I forced my palm onto her neck. She gagged, she thrashed, and I beat her like she beat me so many times.

When her eyes began to roll back, I'd let her breathe. I stare at her and wait. The moment I felt her move, I went right back to strangling and punching.

I had just closed my hands over her bloody mouth and nose when Sensei noticed me.

"Sara?"

I remained silent, watching my lifelong opponent suffocate before me.

At the mention of my name, the students turned to make fun of me, to egg Meerkah on in her daily success against me.

Boy, were they surprised when they saw us.

"NO!" Someone yanked me off. I let him pull me to my feet before I struck. I swung around, smashing my foot into his right cheek. He tumbled to the ground.

I didn't even know him. But I gave him no mercy. Who the hell did he think he is? How can he possibly justify standing there day after day after day, watching me in pain. Watching me hurt. Watching _me_ suffer.

I pounded my heel into his stomach until he began to cough blood. The moment I saw that trickle, I smiled. CRACK! I soccer-kicked his face. He laid there limp.

Without a word, I turned to the crowd. I pointed at someone, don't even know who. "You. You're next."

The room was empty within an instant. I even heard screams. Sensei stalked up to me.

I caught his arm as he swung. He stared at me, dumbstruck.

I spat in his face.

Then I let go and took the beating soundlessly, keeping my eyes on him.

_I'm gonna survive. And when I do, you better hide. 'Coz I'm gonna kill you._

000

Janice refused to talk to me after that. No matter, I did my own work. Now the lessons were instantly registered, my movements as fluid as Meerkah's used to be.

She didn't leave the hospital for two weeks. Bitch deserved what she got. Then she steered clear of me, keeping her ugly whore face down, hidden behind a curtain of yellow hair. Those gray eyes remained glued to the floor whenever I walked in.

Fast learner.

Everyone else avoided me. I didn't care. I never liked them anyway.

The strangest thing happened to me one day. I was watching people from my big invisible wall point of view as we practiced close combat with a six-inch knife. And then I came up with an idea.

Later that day, I taped the knife to my wrist, thrusting out my arm. My mind began to work.

I needed a trigger. Perhaps activated when I bend my hand back. If I put a pressure pad there, I could make the knife pop out, and then slide back in.

I got to work, using a vast majority of books in the library. Nobody challenged me when I took them. Nobody challenged me when I raided the closets. Nobody ever challenged me.

It took wire, twine, leather, metal, and more patience than I knew I had—but I constructed a device that would allow me to use a six-inch knife within seconds. I never showed Janice.

Once I figured out how to do that, endless oppurtunities opened up. I had no Keyblade, so I'd have to make due with something else. I was nothing special with a crossbow, but knives came easy for me. Anything with a sharp edge did. So I took a page from Altaïr's book (for those of you who don't love video games as much as I do, he's one of the main characters in Assassin's Creed) and designed an entire outfit meant for subtle killing.

I'm no designer, but I've always had to sew our clothes whenever anything happened. We never had enough money to just get new stuff. I've fixed everything there is to fix, and know my way around clothing. Eventually I figured out how to make pretty legit Halloween costumes.

"That's what this is Sara," I whispered to myself as I cut into the swishy white robe. "This is the ultimate Halloween costume."

It took a very long time. It almost wasn't worth it, but I still stuck with it. Because in the end, I made a masterpiece.

My outfit itself was the hooded robe (cut so the hem reached mid-thigh and the sleeves went to my elbow), gray leggings, and sturdy (but light) black boots.

The weapons were what made the costume. I had my original knife contraptions on my forearms, but I adjested them so knives would also slide out when I elbowed something. I couldn't figure out how to trigger a sliding knife in my boot, so I could clip blades to my boots. It messed up my balance, so I'd have to work on that. Then around my stomach was the motherload.

I made a corset of black leather with a thick strap that went over my right shoulder. Attached to my back was a kantana, a hunting knife, and a short sword. Just behind my right shoulder were my throwing knives and shuriken, so when I needed them all I had to do was slip a hand back there. On my stomach were pairs of sai and butterfly knives. And I also had a corkscrew. You never know when you'll need a corkscrew.

I stood in front of the mirror, admiring myself. I pulled up the hood, and it fell to the bridge of my nose. I had to admit, I did pretty good. I mean, it was maybe a little excessive, but I was ok with that. The important thing was preparation. I was certainly ready for anything.

"Ava wouldn't have made something so ridiculous," Janice sneered. That's all she did. _"Ava this"_ and_ "Ava that"_ and (my personal favorite)_ "Ava's better than you"_

And then I got to work teaching myself magic. Like I said, the books in the library gave me more than enough information.

As I learned about the five classes of magic (destruction/black, construction/white, illusion/purple, control/blue, and restoration/green), I found myself drifting toward the kind meant for solid power. For killing.

I needed to kill. It all came together now. I couldn't really live unless I took the life of another. Perhaps there was a time the mere thought would horrify me, but now I was relieved. I could become a person again. That's what was important.

Magic was simpler than I thought. The five classes came together simply.

Black magic was intent on taking down the opponent with large-scale, big-picture attacks. You needed dried plants to conduct that.

White magic was meant for protection, the sudden creation and building of barriers out of nothing. Fresh plants were needed, thus being the opposite of black.

Purple magic just fucked with your target, making them see anything from their own death to the death of others. That vessel was pieces of the living—hair, feather, scales, etc.

Blue magic focused on bending the will of anything to match your own (ie: making fire spread on command, having water launch someone in the air, stuff like that). It's complicated, you need a part of what you were controlling (a shell for water, ash for fire, leaf for earth, smoke for air, gravel for rock, etc.).

And then there was green magic. That focused solely on helping yourself and others by building up certain traits, creating protection, and healing. You needed life-filled stone for that (stuff like amber and whatnot).

I initially planned on utilizing black magic, but a thought occurred to me. What if I _do _face a better warrior? I need a method of disabling them before they could do any lasting damage.

I began sewing feathers to the inside of my outfit. I picked up a little jar pendant, filling it with ground up scales from various creatures. And I made sure to attach a bit of bone to every weapon I had. One can never be too prepared.

I almost asked Janice for help, but I remembered her lack of participation thus far. I had no reason to rely on her for anything. I had to do this myself.

I guess being the Gatekeeper gave me an automatic boost in magic, because the moment I held that feather and focused on convincing my classmate he was drowning, he began gasping and screaming. I released the spell just as easily, and felt the tiniest trickle of pride.

"Beat that Ava," I whispered, tying the hawk feather into my hair.

000

_Did you see her face?_

_No, I was a little occupied with the screaming kid._

_It was her. She did something to him._

_Magic?_

_Magic._

_Dear…God…_

_We need to get rid of her. Calen says she's become a threat. He beat her within an inch of her life, and she just stared at him. He's unnerved._

_Calen's weak._

_Sara isn't. We need to sell her now. Before Janice sees the use in her._

000

I should've known there was something wrong when brought my food to my room.

"No eating with the others."

Janice was nowhere to be found. I didn't care. I didn't miss her.

A knapsack was thrust at me.

"You're switching rooms. Pack your things."

With a shrug, I let the _way_ too hot food cool as I neatly folded and placed everything I owned into the bag.

My costume, my weapons, three sets of underwear, a pair of pants, a tank top. That's it.

Then I dug in.

I honestly shouldn't have been as surprised as I was when the drugs kicked in.


	9. Satoru

Nine

I woke up with my knapsack, sprawled on a weaving wooden floor. A frilly man stood over me.

"Get up girl." He thrust a pile of cloth into my lap. "Or should I say 'boy'?"

"Uh…I'm a girl, I assure you."

It felt so good to be able to mouth off. This man was nobody. He deserved no respect.

"Not anymore. Your name is Satoru. You are a worker on my ship. Carry that bag with you at all times; keep your head down, do as you're told. I own you now."

"And who the hell do you think you are?" I snapped, getting to my feet.

"Captain Hook," he smirked (as though that meant something to me). Before I could give him a piece of my mind, he turned on his heel. "Smee will help you."

"Now, now Satoru," Smee chided, yanking my long curly locks and jerking my head back. "Boys have _short_ hair…"

000

Satoru was the ship's guardian or something. Fuck, I don't know. I spend my time mouthing off to authority.

"Satoru! Hoist the sail!"

I crossed my legs and smirked, "You're an able-bodied man, do it yourself."

I was wearing baggy clothes and a hat, pulled low over my eyes. I don't know why they gave me those, but it meant nothing to me. I was still Sara, and I pointedly shot down anyone who dared call me 'Satoru'.

"Captain, Satoru's being difficult and won't…!" The voice faded when I saw who was walking on deck with Captain Blockhead.

My favorite little bastard…Riku…

"Didn't see that one coming," I murmured, about to leap off the railing I was sitting on.

"_**Riku Takahashi, he's responsible for quite a bit of trouble. He'll destroy your home, hurt your friends, and ultimately lose his own soul."**_

It's been a while, but there was something…flat about him.

I was so busy staring at him, I didn't account for the possibility he'd feel it. But he did, and he turned to meet my gaze.

Over the last few months, I had lost weight. And my now ear-length hair fluttered about my head lithely. But I was still me, and the idiot was smart enough to see that. I didn't want to talk to him, to tell him about what happened to me.

I knew that if I started, I'd never stop. I'd never stop crying.

"_**Crying is a sign of weakness."**_

"What are you looking at?" He sneered, slamming his elbow into me as he passed.

I flipped over the edge, tightening my grip and pulling myself up with little difficulty. My hat fluttered to the water, swept away forever.

I hung there, swaying in the wind, glaring at him. Waiting for him to recognize me and apologize. Or teach me how to kick or something

He just smirked.

"Stay out of my way Satoru, and maybe I won't hurt you."

I watched him walk away wordlessly.

_What happened to me?_

000

I went out of my way to piss him off, hoping he'd snap out of it and hug me. Maybe he really was a sociopath. Maybe he never liked me in the first place.

"Rapist," I tsked and shook my head, "How low must we sink Riku?"

Riku's striking sea green eyes narrowed poisonously at me, "Shut your mouth Satoru."

I nodded towards the unconscious girl cradled in his arms. She reminded me of my old self with her brown ringlets. Her eyes were probably blue too. It would explain why he's holding her so gently. I think.

"Remind you of your dead bitch?" I hissed as he walked away.

He threw the girl onto the deck, wheeling on me.

"Don't ever talk about her," he told me calmly. Calmly in that way that was even scarier than yelling.

I was through being scared.

"Or what? You'd never do anything," I crossed my arms and smirked. "Didn't even make a move on that ugly whore, did you?"

I didn't even see him move. All I knew is I was staring at his unperturbed face, and then I was sprawled on the floor, nose throbbing and bloody, and he was walking away with the girl.

"Cheap shot," I growled, getting to my feet and climbing down to wash my nose.

See, for some reason the ship has all these nets on the side. It's easy enough to just grasp them and climb wherever the fuck you want to go. I do it all the time.

I had just taken off the jacket and was trying to scrub out the blood when the voice washed over me.

"_You're stupid!"_

Without thinking twice, I threw the stained article into the water, scrambling up to the main deck.

"Sora?" I poked my head over the rail. I was almost afraid to believe it was true.

He took one look at my face. And then his face broke into a smile, that smile he always reserved for me.

I knew he'd recognize me. Twin telepathy ROCKS!

He turned back to Riku, "And you said she died."


	10. Sunshine and Roses

Ten

So I climbed over the deck, we joined in a group hug, Kairi popped up out of nowhere, the bad guys applauded and became good at the sight of our love, Riku kissed me, and we lived happily ever after.

Just kidding.

"Give me a break!" I snapped at Janice, rubbing a towel through my scruffy hair. Her image matched mine exactly, hair cut and all.

And she was _not_ happy about it.

"You honestly thought you could just go with your brother and everything would be sunshine and roses for you? This is a _war_ honey! Open your eyes!" She thrust her hand out over the town ("London" she called it), I stared down at the twinkling lights.

"Ava was your favorite," I whispered. "And you're mad at me because she's dead, and all you've got is me."

With a sigh, she leaned against one of the columns of the clock tower. "I loved her. And you're just pathetic."

"Keep talking like that, see if I help you."

Once again, she sighed bitterly. "I can't believe I have to spend a century with you."

"Maybe I won't go."

"You have to. I'll make you."

For a moment, we glared at each other. Then I slumped back against my column, still weary from my three-hour tread and the soreness in my arm.

After a few minutes, I broke the silence.

"I haven't seen him in…" I tried to count the miserable days. "In…"

"Ten months."

"Yeah," I stared out at the skyline. "I haven't seen him in ten months."

"Which him?"

"Both, I guess." I pulled my knees to my flat chest. "I haven't seen either of them in ten months. It's a strange thought."

"Hey," she shrugged and sat next to me. "You've come a long way."

"It's amazing what ten months of concentrated daily beatings can do for you…"

00 **FIVE HOURS AGO** 00

"I knew purchasing you was a bad idea," Hook growled while the boys gaped at me (oh, that's right, Riku punched a girl. I wonder how _that_ tastes).

"Wait, you did _what?_" Sora took a step forward.

His answer was pure metal hook into the back of my hand. I shrieked as the cold steel slid into my flesh, shockwaves of fire vibrated throughout my arm. I let go with that hand, yanking it to safety.

Bad idea. The hook tore through my skin like a hot knife through butter. Spots swam before me, and I could feel tears begin to slide down my cheeks. Pulsating stings shot through my central nervous system like there was no fucking tomorrow.

I looked up at the shadow blocking the moonlight. The only thing I could comprehend was the glinting question mark. A single bead of my blood collected on the point, welling up into a teardrop.

_Pluck_

I squinted as it hit my cheek, sliding down my pale face peacefully.

"Shit."

Two pairs of hands clamped down on Hook, and he disappeared. I winced at the thud.

"Let me pull her up!"

"No, I'm stronger!"

"She's _my_ sister!"

"_I'm _stronger!"

"Here's a genius idea," I interrupted dryly. "Why don't you stop your fighting, AND GET ME THE FUCK OFF THIS RAILING?"

Once again, profanity snapped them into reality. Sora grabbed my wrist and tugged me up. Riku spun around.

"Get away from her!"

Ok, so Hook wasn't down for the count. Too bad.

The other pirates were a little busy standing around looking stupid. They hated Hook, and they hated me, and they didn't mind Riku as much. They didn't care about the boy.

"Whatever," they returned to their posts.

Riku slipped his arms under my shoulders, hefting me out of Sora's grasp.

"She's mine. It's not like you'll let her go on your ship anyway," He sneered.

"Don't you _dare_ touch her!"

"Ok, ok, stop with the whole chest-pounding thing and get me a band-aid. _Please_!"

Sora took my hand (the not shredded one) and yanked me away from Riku pointedly. He removed a weird glowing bottle of green stuff.

"Uh," I pressed my injured hand to my chest protectively. "What is that?"

"It'll help, trust me."

I hesitantly held out my hand.

He uncorked it and dumped it onto my hand.

"Oh, EW!" I yanked my limb back to my chest, "Now you got all this green crap on it!"

I gently blew on the pulsating wound, the weird stuff not helping the pain. It just felt like water, kinda stung, but pretty useless in a 'big picture' sense.

The boys gaped. A weird quack sounded out in the background.

"I think I hear a du…" And then I officially went insane. Standing on the opposite side of the deck was a giant duck and a giant-er dog.

"AH! RADIATION! WE'RE ALL GONNA MUTATE! EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF!"

"Relax Sara," Sora yanked on my shoulders before I could run (thank Cthulhu for that, Riku looked like he was about to pounce or something). "That's Donald and Goofy. They're with me."

"They're his _new friends_." Riku sneered, "He replaced us."

"Maybe he replaced you, but I'll still be his irritating twin."

"Y—your hand! It's still cut!"

"Eh," I shrugged. "It's like a dull throb now."

"That should've healed it."

"_You_!" Hook was back on his feet again, and he looked _pissed_.

"Which one, the brat with spiky hair, the rich snob, or the badger?" I pointed at each of us as I listed our titles. Sora and Riku both glared at me for a moment.

I received my answer soon enough when a bunch of those zombies appeared.

"Riku!" Sora motioned toward me violently, "They'll hurt her!"

He lifted his hands in surrender, "It's not me!"

"ZOMBIES!"

Everybody paused for a moment.

"Uh…the politically correct term is 'heartless'."

"They eat humans, right? And when humans are eaten, they become them, right? Thus, they are zombies."

"Whatever."

I grinned, "Ah man, give me a guitar and this'll be just like Left 4 Dead 2!"

"Sara, leave this to us." Riku patted me on the shoulder as he and Sora jumped into the fray.

While they were busy, I looked around for a weapon. Then I realized I was wearing my knapsack.

"Not so fast _Sara_." Then I was pinned to the railing by Hook's bad arm on my neck, his damn hook slicing up my shoulder.

I narrowed my eyes. "I'm gonna kill you," I managed to rasp before he cut off my air supply.

My knapsack swung about my back, its light weight distributing pointedly. _You're armed. USE ME!_

I reached…

"Not so fast ya scurvy bitch!" He grabbed my wrist and twisted…

_CRACK_

I've never broken a bone before.

It really hurts.

In fact, that crack was the last thing I heard before my ears started ringing. The last thing I saw was Hook's greasy face as he shoved me over the railing, into the ocean below…

000

"Where the hell have you been?" Janice hovered above me, eyes narrowed and arms crossed. Her hair was short now too. It actually had a nice feathery affect with the half-curls.

"I went for a swim," I responded. "It's a little difficult to float when your forearm's in two pieces.

"Ah," she rolled her eyes and reached…

Everything went black.

When I woke up, the pain was down to a dull throb. She was using two makeshift driftwood poles and the shredded remains of my only pair of normal pants to make a split. My hand was also pretty much patched up.

"Here," she handed me a pill. "Choke it down with sea water, we got work to do."

I did as I was told, gagging and awkwardly clawing at my throat while Janice tied my arm to my chest.

"That'll take a while to heal. No matter, we gotta get the fuck outta here."

"Why?"

"Well, Captain Bitch-fit there knows what you are. Chances are, he'll tell the League of Extraordinary Evil. We're all sorts of screwed thanks to you."

"Thanks to _me_? What the fuck did I do?"

"Run away," she rolled her eyes, "Did you honestly think cutting your hair was going to keep me from finding you?"

"I was sold! I didn't run away!"

That stopped her cold. "_Sold_?"

"The Academy endorses the slave trade." That would make sense. From what little knowledge I gathered, the Academy picks up stray orphans and constructs them into psychotic murderers. Then (judging by what they did with me) they ship them off to the highest bidder.

"_Fuck_!" She stomped her feet. "Come on, we need to get outta here. We'll go to Big Ben and regroup there."

"Who's Big Ben?" I got to my feet.

"He's a clock tower, moron." She leapt into the air. And stayed there.

"How come you can fly?"

She grinned like the cat that swallowed the canary. "I strangled a fairy. Hey, you want some fairy dust?"

She tossed a handful of fine glitter in my face. I coughed, waving it away.

"Now think pretty thoughts and let's get the hell outta here!"

"Pretty thoughts?"

"Something happy. You fly if you think of something happy."

"Uh, ok."

I imagined my hands around her neck, squeezing until her eyes bulged and the only sound coming out of her mouth was the bubble of foam spit…

"Jeez, that's more effective than mine, and I thought of Ava!"

"Simple, I thought of killing you."

"_HEY_!"


	11. Serenity in the Form of Planet Eating

Eleven

Janice continued teaching me, although the lessons were less than pure.

I learned how to pick a pocket, how to get a five-fingered discount, how to pick a lock with a bobby and safety pin, how to quickly immobilize an opponent, and how to weave friendship bracelets.

Ok, I made up that last one.

I learned this in Kingdom Hearts.

We were simply standing at the top of the clock tower, doing nothing. Then she waved her hands and made a door appear.

"There's no way in hell you're ready for this, but knock yourself out. Please."

It looked just like the islet.

I took two steps onto the sand before falling to the floor and crying.

We spent about two months in there. It was hell, but I survived. And we plotted a pretty good game plan.

Meanwhile, Kingdom Hearts began to fuse with a planet.

You see, in order to remain stable, the powerhouse needs to place its energy somewhere. So it (of its own accord) began to eat away at a dead planet, the energy flow combining with the deadened ground and creating the largest magical realm ever heard of. Thus, the planet came back to life, but also became an alternate reality.

It chose that small patch of sand that I first woke up on with Riku. I spent most of my time there, reflecting on my fall. The last words I said to him. And mostly (this was going to sound super pathetic) how much I missed him.

After a while, I began to find peace here, not dreading my eternity of solitude quite as much as I used to.

And then my brother had to come along and ruin it.


	12. The Hand That Kills

Twelve

"_Sara," his eyes widened. He reached out. "Don't move."_

I was sitting on my little patch of land, staring off into space. Literally.

I wonder if Riku's thinking about me right now…

"Stop it!" I slapped myself on the forehead. There's no reason to think stupid thoughts like that. You're becoming a dog—like Selphie.

"Remember, she's a human, not a dog," I reminded myself meaningfully.

Yep, I talk to myself. And you wanna know a secret? _Sometimes I talk back_.

"I'm going insane," I groaned, lying back on the dusty sand. Yesterday I got to go to Twilight Town and buy clothes. Granted, all the munny I used was jacked from unsuspecting wallets, but the dress was _very pretty_.

I fingered the lavender cotton idly, staring up at the nonexistent ceiling. Is there an end to that? Am I just staring into space? Why can't I see stars?

"Oh yeah, they flicker out when planets die."

My little patch of sand was my haven. Kingdom Hearts began to build all these rock pathways and stuff, branching off my haven. Currently, it was attached to a large clearing with the dramatic door to Kingdom Hearts. Well, it's Kingdom Hearts if Janice or I open it. It's the Realm of Darkness if anyone else does. Ha ha, I'd like to see those fuckers try and take it over now!

(At this time, I had no idea that my future boyfriend would end up stuck in there for three weeks and end up emotionally scarred well into his forties. Oops.)

I was just beginning to lazily drift off to sleep when Janice pounced on my stomach.

"RETREAT! OH GOD…**RETREAT**!" She squawked in my face. I groaned and shove her off.

"Not now, I'm trying to catch up on sleep." I rolled over, mumbling a few mean names ('fairy-strangling bitch' may or may not have been one of them).

"Sara, we gotta GO! They're _comiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing_!" She hissed the last part in a disturbingly quiet voice, steadily getting softer as she dragged out the vowel.

In Janice-language: This is important.

"Who's coming? Can't it wait?"

"They're coming!" She bounced frantically. "We have to _gooooooooooooo_!"

"Who is 'they'?"

"The League of Extraordinary Evil!"

"SHIT!" I leapt to my feet. "This is bad. This is _really _bad! Did they find us?"

"I don't know! _They're here_!"

"Yeah, I got that. We need to think though."

"We can think when we're safe _inside the realm_!" She was practically vibrating with caffeine and anxiety (a deadly mix). "We have a booby trap to set!"

We planned it perfectly, when anybody (excluding us) opens the door, a burst of vaporizing energy flows out. Aren't we geniuses? We've been plotting this for ages.

"No," I shook her off. "We need to hide."

"Yes, _in the realm_!"

"We'll fall back in there, for now we need to figure out who's here, and what they know!"

She huffed, "Fine. We'll hide in the cave walls. Use the fairy dust."

"No shit Sherlock."

"I hate you, did I ever mention that?"

"Once or twice," I leapt down to the lower platform. "Are the guardians ready?"

"They've all been defeated, except for the gargoyle."

"Ouch," I hopped down again. "What about the door? Is the door safe?

"Not really," she followed me. "What do we do?"

I made it to the main chamber, hurrying to the wall. Without a sound, I soared up to the highest peak and settled in the crack. I leaned forward, staring down at the reflection of me.

My hair grew a little bit, becoming a short bob of loose curls. She also wore the same dress, swirly lavender cotton, hem that went to the knees and sleeves that went to the thumbs. All this running about barefoot was probably bad for us, but it was easier than pulling on shoes.

She rushed for the wall (probably had fallen behind, I _am_ pretty fast after all). Then pigs flew.

Because the odds of this happening was ridiculously low.

Riku (wearing a skirt) appeared out of nowhere, lunging.

He fisted her hair, yanking her back into his arms. She whimpered, but stopped struggling when he pressed that wicked blade against her pale neck.

"Sara, Sara, Sara…" He murmured to her. "If only you knew what you did to him."

Her eyes flashed to me for an instant. I pulled my legs up and rolled out of sight.

His voice was so…deep. I mean, I understand puberty, but this was creepy. Like something was possessing Riku.

"You know _Gatekeeper_, you'll lose. You'll always lose." He pressed his lips to her temple. "But you're prettier than the other ones. Maybe I'll keep you. I could always use a pet."

"Uh—EW." I mumbled under my breath as Janice said it.

"He loves you," Riku grinned an unfamiliar smile of malice and evil. None of his stereotypical '_I'm rich, love me_' shit.

He dragged her towards the room we just left.

"I'll make sure it's his hands that kill you."


	13. Protector

Thirteen

And the mysterious mute protector of "Sara" was born. Well, my presence didn't become _known_ to anyone, but I was there.

From above, I watched in confusion as Riku carted "me" off. I flitted amongst shadows, unsure of whether this was the final straw or not. I mean, all this time I've been thinking he's a sociopathic psychotic mind-fuck…what if he is? What if he really is?

"Let me go! You're making a mistake!"

"I'm not that stupid Sara. I've heard a lot about you, little trickster." We were in the room with the door…wait, THE DOOR!

"Oh shit," I murmured. "Cthulhu damn it."

He launched her forward, "open it."

"I—I can't," she lay sprawled on the ground. Who's the wimp now, _bitch_?

"Don't play with me, I'll kill you and use your cold hands to pry it open. Might as well cooperate."

"I—I won't!"

I stepped out of the shadows for an instant, waving behind Riku's back.

_Do it_.

She caught my eye for a moment. I pointed to the door, nodded vigorously, and retreated.

"I'm serious little girl, I'll wring your pretty little neck!"

"Ok, ok!" She got to her feet, trembling with legitimate fear. Docilely, she tugged open the door. _The door_.

I followed them into my habitat, snatching my knapsack on the way.

000

"Riku likes it here," Riku hissed (Cro-Magnon anyone?). "Quite pathetic if you ask me."

"Nobody asked you," we simultaneously retorted (granted, my reply was in my head, but it was there…it counts).

"Sara" was suddenly sprawled on the ground, a welt forming on her right cheek.

A tear hit the sand.

Oh my Cthulhu, are you serious? I took all that shit without even making a sound, and you break down after one puny slap? Fuck you.

I crept around back, too ashamed of her to watch anymore.

Besides, I needed to gear up.

My arm was still in its splint. That meant I couldn't put on one of the bracers. I've practiced with the other hand though, so I'm still good.

I undressed quickly, ignoring the tremors in the ground. I pulled on my costume. When I pulled the hood down, I became something new.

Sara's unnamed protector.

I stuffed my old stuff into my knapsack and buried it in the sand.

I awkwardly wrapped my weak right hand (that scar severely limits my fine motor skills, but I've been practicing) around a small dagger. I could block and stab, which was good enough. My left hand's the one with the bracer anyway. I'll be fine.

I climbed my favorite old tree, keeping my eye on Janice. Right now, he was just standing there. What the hell is he waiting for?

I found out moments later when Sora and his mutated circus buddies barged into my paradise.

Oh shit, I left the door open. I smacked myself on the forehead (which hurts when you have steel-infused leather coating your palm).

"Is—is this my island?"

Uh…no. It's my island too jerk face.

And then the absolute worst happened…

The paopu island suddenly disappeared.

"No!" I whispered, reaching…

Snapping noises rang out. The tree shook. I turned my head…

Half the foundation was gone too!

I scrambled to find safety before I was discovered. If anyone finds out Janice isn't me, this'll get a _lot_ more complicated…

Using my good hand, I swung down to the rock cluster.

"_Look at me, I'm a monkey!"_

Just as I mastered my ankle-cracking landing, the tree fell. Everybody turned…

I crammed myself between rocks. My silver cloak allowed me to blend in. They never saw me.

I surveyed my once-beautiful islet haven. The water was gone, the sand has leaked, all the stability was gone. The ground was sliced open crudely, and all that remained was an endless vortex of unfamiliarity and evil.

My _island_…

"**Take a look at this tiny place…"** Riku's new voice boomed, enrapturing all. I slowly began to stand…

_My_ island. My twitching, sore fingers tightened around the blade.

"**To the heart seeking freedom, this island is a prison surrounded by water."**

I rolled my eyes, breaking the spell. Ok Riku, we really don't need to hear the story of your life right now. I hopped down to the sand.

"**And so this boy sought to escape from his prison."**

Wait, what? Why does he keep talking about himself like that?

"**He sought a way to cross over into other worlds…"**

Janice met my confused gaze, subtly waving for me to hurry. I nodded and tore across the sand silently. I settled beneath the ivy just in time.

"**And he opened his heart to darkness."**

And he turned. Yet, as he turned, his form rippled and faded into that of an older man. A Filipino by the look of it.

Mmm, exotic.

Damn hormones, I hit myself again.

"Riku!" Sora rushed forward.

Janice gasped as the blade nicked her flesh. A bead of red welled on her neck, leisurely strolling down the exposed white flesh…

"Move, and she dies."

He grinned.

"And don't bother, your voice can no longer reach him where he is."

No. No, it—it couldn't be…

"Riku," I whispered.

"**His heart belongs again to **_**darkness**_**!"**

"No."

Out of the blue, he slammed the hilt of the blade into Janice's neck. She fell limp.

"SARA!"

"**All worlds begin in darkness, and all so end. The heart is no different. Darkness sprouts within it, grows, consumes it."**

"**Such is its nature."**

"**In the end, every heart returns to the darkness whence it came!"**

"**You see, darkness is the heart's **_**true**_** essence."**

You know, if this guy wasn't planning on killing everyone I know and love, I'd give that speech a ten on the bad-ass scale.

"That's not true!"

Sora curled his hands into fists.

"The heart may be weak. And sometimes it may even give in."

"But I've learned that deep down, there's a light that _never_ goes out!"

And Sora, you just took all the awesome street cred of that villainous speech, and stomped on it. Thanks again for being related to me.

They began doing that weird chest-beating thing that men all so often do. I shrugged and snuck out, grabbing and dragging Janice's body off the edge.

Yeah, it seems bad, but it's Kingdom Hearts. We'll be fine.

Just as I suspected, the vortex welcomed us, transporting us into another layer of Kingdom Hearts.


	14. Choose Wisely

Fourteen

I cradled Janice's limp carcass as my pure-light surroundings quaked again. A drizzle of snowy plaster dust sprinkled us with flecks of white.

"What the hell is going on?"

**The foundations! They're crumbling!**

It wasn't a voice that said it. It wasn't said. There was just this presense. I could feel the meaning behind the feelings, but the words just formed in my head. I don't know where it came from, it was just there. It felt like it was always there…

**Enough with the melodramatic crap. Get those fuckers out!**

Oh. Hi Janice.

**Sheesh, I'm a realm. You can knock my physical incarnation to pieces, but you can't stop the consciousness.**

So what the hell have I been doing for the past three hours!

**Being stupid. Hurry your ass up, they're having that epic last stand. Your brother is losing badly.**

"WHAT?" Janice slipped out of my grasp, hitting the ground with a cringing '_thud_'.

**He's weak, and…wait for it…wait for it…yep. He's falling into nothingness. And his friends are in the vortex. He just lost.**

"No!" I got to my feet. "I have to save him!"

**I can help you. But there's no going back.**

"Anything! Just save him!"

Something glittered before me. I stepped forward just as a pink crystal began to form.

**You wanted to save him.**

I touched the heart.

A swell of franticness swept through me, along with an abundance of love. Fear, joy, hurt, sadness, guilt…it washed over me like the ocean I've grown to love.

"This—this is…"

**Riku's heart. Set it free and he'll save your brother.**

I reached…

**There's a catch.**

"I don't care!"

**You'll never go back to that island.**

"Wh—_what_?

**If you accept my offering, you're officially my Gatekeeper. Your life will become nothing more than a constant service to me. You will fight off the threat and close yourself inside me and rebuild Earth.**

**You will never see those you love again.**


	15. And it Begins

Fifteen

I didn't even think. I grabbed Riku's heart and…held it.

"Uh, what do I do?"

**Damn, you're hopeless. Tell him "you're free".**

"Ok…you're free?"

**Don't tell it to me! You're trying to free your boyfriend, put some **_**feeling **_**into it!**

"You're free," I whispered, tightening my grip once before letting go. "Save him Riku, it's up to you."

It hovered for a moment, then it exploded. It wasn't painful in any way. It's like watching a video. I can see it, I can hear it, but I can't feel it.

Riku's heart combusted, swelling and popping into a thousand glittering shards that fluttered to the ground. I stared at the little circle.

**You wanted to save him.**

"I wanted to save both of them."

**Well, you did. They're fine.**

"Where is he?"

**On the other side of the door. They're trying to close it for good.**

"And I take it this is the end?"

**Not quite Sara. It's just the beginning…**


	16. I Have an Idea

Sixteen

_I walked outside, wanting to get away from Sora and Kairi. It was sickening, the way they looked at each other. I couldn't be in the same room as them._

_I made sure to turn off the automated locks first, I wasn't stupid._

_Sara was out there, sitting on the swing and drinking a big mug of something._

"_Ah, you found the cider." I sat next to her. We weren't really friends, but I definitely preferred her presence right now._

_She shrugged, still drinking deeply._

"_Sora was looking for you an hour ago, where have you been."_

_She coughed, "here."_

_Suddenly it clicked, "you were locked out?"_

_She nodded, drinking again._

"_How much of that do you have?"_

"_There were two bottles out here, plus the one I brought out." She took another sip, "I don't think this is cider though. It tastes funky and makes me feel warm and fuzzy."_

_I glanced at the empty bottles sitting on the ground. One was sparkling apple cider, the others were…_

"_Uh…that's champagne."_

_She was just finishing off the mug, "Well, I'm out of it."_

"_That's probably really good…" I trailed off when I saw her shiver. "Are you ok? You might have alcohol poisoning."_

_She tugged on the lapels of my jacket, "I'm cold."_

_I let her pull me towards her, figuring she'd just take my coat. Of course, she was totally hammered so I should've had a more realistic outlook._

_She didn't stop pulling until I was practically on top of her. The seat swung like crazy as she put her feet up and slipped them under me (I was already stretched out on the bench). Then she buried her face in my neck and sighed._

_These weird zings exploded in my body, and I shuddered from the weird feeling._

_I don't know who started it, but then we were kissing. I think I instigated, which was basically suicide. Still, the fireworks that went off in my nervous system felt amazing and intoxicating._

_We were swinging violently, and when I tried to get closer we slipped off. I used the momentum to make sure she landed on top of me._

_My back slammed onto the deck with a dull thud, but the pain made me gasp._

_Her tongue slithered into my mouth._

_I've never done this before, the Frenching thing. In fact, I thought it was a little gross. But with Sara, I couldn't really explain the sensation. But it was absolutely breathtakingly incredible. I never wanted to stop._

_Her fingers laced through my hair, curling the strands of silver around her digits. I groaned, always a sucker for a good scalp massage._

_Sara didn't have the lung capacity of a lap swimmer (me), and ended up breaking away first. I gave her a few moments, then kissed her again. We continued where we left off._

_I ended up embarrassing myself about three minutes later._

_All the blood in my head began rushing down, congregating between my legs. When she felt it, she pulled away. Then I realized what was happening._

_I shut my eyes, willing myself to disappear (or stop blushing, I'm Riku! I don't __**blush**__), "Oh God no."_

_She giggled, making my face flush even more, and gave my ear a little nip. She rolled off of me, but stayed by my side and stared at the sky. Hesitantly, I reached for her hand. She entwined her fingers with mine, giving the back of my hand a little stroke. Together we watched the stars as drunk people everyone began screaming the countdown._

_At zero, as a burst of sudden inspiration, I pressed a gentle kiss to her jaw. She was sound asleep, her tiny fingers still loosely wound around mine. _

_Even though she was completely wasted, it was the best New Years of my life. My wish was that we'd get the chance to do that again when she was sober…_

"Riku!"

I sat up; glaring in the general direction of the voice (it was too bright for me to catch the perpetrator). "_What_?"

"DiZ says it's time to wake up. You have work."

"Why do _I_ always have to do everything?"

She stepped away from the fluttering lace curtains (too girlish for my tastes, but I didn't spend much time in here anyway).

Sara smirked and crossed her arms, sapphire eyes flashing with sass and mischievousness. "Because you're Riku."

00 **THREE MONTHS AGO** 00

"What happened to him?" I stared at the limp form of my brother.

"Organization XIII." Janice replied without looking up from her computer.

"_Who_?"

"Think of them as the new and improved League of Extraordinary Evil. As a bonus, they're total sociopaths. It's kinda funny."

"Interesting," I rolled my eyes. "Can we get back to my brother please?"

"_Fine_." She swiveled her chair around, "He's comatose. And his memories are fucked to hell thanks to Little Miss Blondie. So we need to rebuild them."

"Uh, _why_ is he in a coma?"

"The Organization realized he was killing them off slowly and drugged him. I killed the nobodies trying to drag him off and planted a temporary memory that makes him think he did this willingly."

"Ok, but why is he _still_ in a coma?"

She stared down at the boy that we left on the floor.

"Eh…it's just easier to put his mind back together this way." She sighed, "Of course, we could just kill him and take the Keyblade…"

"Shut up!"

"Fine," She threw her hands in the air. "Whatever!"

Sora stirred a little, turning his head to the other side.

"Damn, he got taller."

"Get him into the pod before he wakes up. That'll keep him in suspended animation and make our _greatly unnecessary_ job much easier."

"We're not killing my brother; get that stupid thought out of your head!"

"Whatever! Just get his ass into the pod."

"Fine!" I looped my arms under his shoulders, dragging him out of the room.

It's been quite a while since the big Kingdom Hearts raid. Janice and I regrouped in another sanctuary that _Ava_ developed (I hate her so Cthulhu-damn much) in this little out-of-the-way town called Twilight Town. Apparently she came from a wealthy family and managed to buy out an entire mansion.

Granted, she's been dead for fifteen years, so it's in poor condition. But it keeps a roof over our heads and the technology is somewhat current.

I was trying to plan our next move when we found out there was a vast amount of heart power being harnessed in one concentrated area. My hand and arm are still very weak, so Janice (who I've been training a little) went out to investigate.

I looked at my unconscious brother's lolling head.

This is what she came back with.

I grunted, stuffing him into the special pod that the two of us painstakingly constructed earlier this morning. My arms still hurt.

"Eh, good enough." I pressed the activation button.

It was like a cheesy rock concert. Fog poured out of the interior, and slowly my brother was lifted into the air.

Ah…science. How I love magnetic fields!

Slowly, the folds of metal slid shut. I watched in morbid silence as my twin brother disappeared in a prison of shrapnel and science…

000

We barely got out in time. I didn't want to leave my brother, but Janice said the upload was only going to take a few hours, so long as the intruders didn't touch the computer.

So naturally, they touched the computer.

Sora's memories were scattered into oblivion, our only hope being the physical incarnates of his memory. Or pressing 'CONTROL-Z'. They never press 'CONTROL-Z'. It's always the fucking hard way with them.

"Oh my Cthulhu," I peered around the corner of the tree I was hiding behind. "Is that Riku and a mutated, giant mouse?"

"He got his growth spurt _and_ ruggedly attractive!"

"Damn straight," I elbowed her out of the way. "Back off bitch, he's mine."

She (as always) fell into the dirt.

They looked up at the sound. Thankfully, they didn't reflect on it. They were too busy tracking the signature of Sora's heart.

Whelp, there goes another sanctuary. I heard Costa Rica's nice this time of year.

"What are they doing?" Janice hissed as they disappeared through the wrought-iron gates. "They'll ruin _everything_!"

"If only we could somehow spy on them…"

Ever since I freed Riku's heart, Janice and I have been linked mentally. We can't talk, but we can convey emotions, synchronize movement, transfer memories, and send each other visual and audio snippets.

As usual, a patch of nobodies tried to invade the mansion. I looked down at Janice.

"I have an idea."


	17. The Return of Satoru

Seventeen

"HELP! OH MY CTHULHU, SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP!"

_Nice Janice. Really smooth._

_Hey, do you want me to get in or not? Besides, this is a golden imitation of you._

_Go to hell._

_I'm taking you with me._

A ball of flame shot through the gate, catching one of the advancing nobodies and setting it ablaze.

Riku vaulted over the fence.

I'll admit, I swooned a little when I saw his muscular thighs flex.

_Stem your hormones, they're killing me._

_Fuck you, he oozes sex appeal._

One, two, three slashes. The troop of nobodies was gone.

He spun around, "Sara?"

"Y—you saved me…" She shuddered, staring at the ground. "I—I put you in danger."

"I can handle it," he knelt beside her, "Remember? I can take anything."

_You really are daring._

She smiled a little, "You really are daring."

His face broke into such a relieved grin, I wanted to step out and end the charade right there. When he enveloped Janice in a hug, I practically started crying. I had to bite my lip until it bled, just to keep the sobs from coming out of my heaving chest.

"You really are funny." He stroked her hair gently. "And pretty."

Thankfully, the urge to cry ended right there.

_Oh Cthulhu, really? That's a little excessive, and _I'm_ the one who's supposed to benefit from that statement._

_I know, right?_

"D—do you know where my brother is? Where Kairi is? Where Mom is? I—I'm so lost!" Her shoulders began to shake. "I don't even know where I am," she whimpered.

"That's ok," He was rubbing her back now, awkwardly trying to brush away the few tears she managed to squeeze out (she sucks at fake crying). "It's ok. I'll take care of everything."

And he picked her up, carrying her inside the mansion.

000

_Bad news, they destroyed the project. They're doing the hard way._

_Why didn't you tell them 'CONTROL-Z'?_

_I tried, but that douche bag 'DiZ' is really annoying and took over the computer. He's only good for design by the looks of it._

_I need to see that computer._

_Fat chance princess, they're keeping me away from anything that "might cause me harm"._

_Ouch._

_Tell me about it._

_Maybe we should've had you killing the nobodies instead._

_It's ok. Riku keeps venting to me, I know what's going on._

_I feel really bad about this._

_Stop whining. You have work to do too. I don't know a lot of what's going on, so we'll have to sneak you into the mansion. You'll also have to follow them around when they're outside. And do a lot of pick pocketing. Ok?_

_Shit._

_Stay with it trooper, we're halfway there._

_Living on a prayer?_

_GO TO HELL!_

I laughed to myself, pausing as I struggled to get my leggings on. My thighs and chest were beginning to get awkwardly big. I really need to lose some weight. It was far too dangerous to have two Sara's roaming around (lest somebody finds me, takes me back to the mansion, and then shit hits the fan). So, I had to be (dah dah dah DAAAAAAH) Mysterious Mystery Man. Woman. Thing.

_He's leaving. He says he's gonna be right back (mainly because I tried latching onto him and wailing for him to stay), but I think he's lying. Follow him._

_For once, I'm almost glad you have no pride. Ok, I'm after him._

_NO! Get some perfume on! He can smell me from three rooms away! Go shoplift!_

_Dammit!_

I sniffed my arm. I didn't smell anything. And Janice never wears scented deodorant. I sighed and slipped into a closed jewelry store.

When I smelled like gardenias (Riku's least favorite smell in the world), I tracked him to a remote part of the wood.

He opened a portal.

Well, shit.

I ran through it before it could dissipate.

000

"Who are you?" The man wrapped in red snarled. Riku glared at me from across the room. Well, sorta.

Back in the land that time forgot, I had just realized that he was blindfolded when he suddenly spun around and punched me in the face (again). I stumbled back, and he grabbed my delicate right arm and twisted it…

SNAP!

Oh fuck, not again.

He didn't even flinch at the sound, just slammed his elbow into my neck. I fell to the ground with an inaudible grunt.

He reached for my hood.

_Fuck that._

I twirled, slamming my limp and broken arm into his cheek. He recoiled and I kicked him in the groin.

He collapsed on me with a gasp. I struggled to get out from under him, but he wrapped his arm around my neck.

I knocked the air out of him with my elbow. He just tightened his grip.

I felt my eyes begin to roll back, and I clawed at his arm. It took all my strength, but I managed to slip my fingers in between his forearm and my neck. I pulled, ignoring all the pain radiating from my arm.

Isn't this ironic? The boy who loves me is killing me.

Apparently he recovered from the blows (they weren't cheap shots, they were honest hits), because he hauled me to my feet and dragged me through the portal.

And here I am, standing there with my newly broken arm cradled against my chest, getting myself grilled.

_JANICE! IT HURTS! HELP ME!_

_I'm coming! Chill your ovaries!_

"What's going on? I heard yelling…" "Sara" walked into the room innocently.

"Sara, DON'T…" Riku stepped forward, but it was too late. She noticed me.

"There you are!" She grinned and hurried forward. "I knew you didn't abandon me!"

She pulled me into a sweet little hug, brushing up against my broken arm.

And she kissed me.

_Oh Cthulhu. This is so gross._

_Go with it._

_I want to cry._

_Me too, shut up._

_Ew…please stop._

_We're supposed to look intimate, stop grimacing._

_You're hurting my arm._

She pulled away, "Baby, what's wrong?"

Oh Cthulhu, if looks could kill I'd be horrifyingly dead ten times over. I've never seen Riku so pissed.

Yes, this was worse than the time I accidentally superglued flowers into his hair. And I don't think he ever forgave me for that.

She gasped, "Oh my Cthulhu! Someone get me two sticks and a bandage! Sit down Sweetie, this is gonna hurt."

_Really? You mean setting a broken arm HURTS?_

_Shut up and humor me. You're supposed to be madly in love with me._

_I'm this close to vomiting on you._

_I'll kiss you again if you do that._

_Oh Cthulhu, no!_

It physically pained me, but I smiled adoringly at her.

Oh dear Cthulhu, I hate this bitch.

I woke up on the ground with her sitting over me.

_What happened?_

_You passed out._

_Did I scream?_

_No, you just sorta slumped. I made sure to start crying though._

_Great. Thanks._

_You're welcome!_

_I was being sarcastic._

_Fuck you!_

"So, who is he?"

"My savior," Janice beamed proudly. "When Riku knocked me out back in Kingdom Hearts…"

"That _wasn't_ me!"

"Sorry," she blinked innocently. "When that guy that looked like you knocked me out, I apparently fell off of the side of the island and into a never-ending vortex. He saved me!" She pointed proudly.

"Why didn't he just say that?"

"Uh…you couldn't tell?"

_Where is this going?_

_Shut up, that's where!_

"Couldn't tell what?"

Suddenly, she was rubbing my back. "Look, it's nothing to be ashamed of. Nobody's gonna reject you because of it.

I did my best to look ashamed.

"_What?_" Riku was obviously beginning to lose his temper.

"Oh," She nudged me. "Satoru's mute."


	18. Riku

Eighteen

From that day on, Riku _hated_ me. He made that perfectly clear.

The worst part of the whole ordeal was I had to pretend I hated him too. I mean, he was being so horrifyingly obvious.

_It's a little sad._

_Eh, I think it's sweet._

_That's because you're not the one being elbowed every three minutes._

Riku's elbow shot out as I walked by, catching me in the ribs.

_There he goes._

_Want me to talk to him?_

_NO!_

_Wow, you're officially becoming a man._

_Shut up._

Whenever I was nearby, he'd go out of his way to charm Janice/Sara/My girlfriend. He insisted on training with me (I kicked his ass every time, but he'd get a few good hits in). And whenever there was any chance, he'd embarrass me publicly.

_I kinda want to end this, just to see how he'll react to me._

_I'd pay to see that._

I have to say, the part that makes all of this totally _not_ worth it is I have to pretend to be Janice's boyfriend. And that right there is downright cruel and unusual.

_Fuck you._

_No thank you._

"Oh here," Riku handed "Sara" the book she was reaching for, smiling sweetly at me over her head.

I forced my lips to purse. In all honesty, I enjoyed watching her struggle for the bookshelf. The rich bastard ruined my fun.

_Wait, let's fuck with him._

Janice grinned at him.

_What do you have in mind?_

000

That little prick. I don't know what he told Sara, but I'm going to kill him if it's the last thing I do.

My left cheek radiated from where Sara slapped it, dragging me into the present.

It hurt. I guess I deserve it though. I was too dark for a girl like that. Somebody sweet, loving, kind…I didn't deserve to be taken care of.

"_Or what? You'd never do anything," Satoru crossed his arms and smirked. "Didn't even make a move on that ugly whore, did you?"_

But that was actually Sara. Maybe she was mad that I never asked her. Maybe she was bitter about her fall.

Come to think of it, how did she survive?

And why wasn't she being her normal, sarcastic self?

Oh wait, I destroyed her home, kidnapped her on multiple occasions, beat her a few times, and practically killed her twice. Maybe she's emotionally scarred.

_I_ scarred her emotionally.

I got out of bed, tightening my blindfold.

When I entered the room, DiZ never even looked up. "Come to complain about your competition."

"I'm ready for him."

"Riku…"

"I can take him. We need to hurry if we'll wake up Sora. So let me go. I'll bring him back."

"Bring who back?" Sara padded into the room bare-foot, rubbing her eyes. "Where are you going?"

"Go back to bed," I growled, trying to scare her. Too late, she already pulled me into a hug.

There was something wrong about the way she smelled. Something familiar that made my senses go haywire.

_Stop being melodramatic. It's the darkness she had to fight. The darkness YOU forced her to fight._

"Don't leave."

"I have to."

"Then take Satoru," She stared up at me concernedly. "He'll protect you."

_She was kissing him, my heart sunk into my stomach…_

Wait. Satoru and I, _alone_. Nobody around.

I began to put it together in my head.

"_I'm so sorry Sara, Roxas was just too strong. Satoru…he's dead."_

"You know what? That sounds like an excellent idea…"


	19. Roxas

Nineteen

_Uh, care to tell me what the fuck happened?_ _Why is Riku distorted and why is he claiming you're dead?_

I looked down cautiously, relieved that Riku was no longer hunting for me. Of course, I wasn't going to leave this tree anytime soon. Hiding in that lake was also a genius idea when up against someone with that nose.

_It started when we left…_

This kid was amazing.

I ducked under another close blow, unsheathing my blade and wishing my arm wasn't still in its makeshift splint. This Roxas guy keeps hitting me there. It got so bad that I backed up and tied it to my chest, just under where my breasts would be if I didn't have that band on them. Sure, I could hardly breathe, but I was subtle enough to appear male and strong.

I reared up, standing on one arm and launching my feet at his legs.

He leapt back and swiped at them, slicing through my leggings.

Uhm…ow.

"Give up! You'll never beat me!"

Smarmy bitch, I'll _kill_ you!

Wait, wait, wait! Riku said _knock out_, not _kill_. Right. Honest mistake really.

Speaking of Riku, where is he?

I found out moments later when I was knocked off my feet by a wave of purple fire. I bit my lip, pretending to be mute as I flew through the air. I hit the ground, getting poked with a few of my kunai and sai.

Riku was floating in the air, columns of swirling black darkness dancing around him. I watched a ball of blackness materialize over his body…

"NO!" I leapt to my feet. My voice was swept away in the sudden burst of wind. Rain splattered the ground, soaking me through my thin silver robe. I didn't care. All that matter was Riku, and he's currently being eaten alive by the Flying Spaghetti Monster or something.

"RESIST HIS NOODLEY GOODNESS!"

Once again, it was swept in the wind. Roxas was on his feet too, and he was looking right at me.

Well, shit.

He lunged, I pulled out my short sword and parried. With a grunt, I launched him away from me and retreated.

He followed.

So here's how the scene's playing out. It's like a hurricane right now, with mini tornadoes of doom everywhere. Riku's encased in a ball of darkness in the middle of it. I'm running like a headless chicken, weaving through the shifting stacks. Roxas is hot on my heels.

"I'M TOO IMPORTANT TO THE PLOT TO DIE!" I cried, "WITHOUT ME, THE STORY WILL NEVER MOVE FORWARD!"

"What?" Roxas stopped. I smacked him upside the face with the flat of the sword.

"I can't believe that actually worked," I mused, pouring chloroform onto a rag and pressing it to his dazed face. DiZ was very specific about that part.

"_**Satoru**_." The most demonic voice I've ever encountered rumbled through the ground. "_**Your time has come**_!"

Of all the cheesy clichés…I sighed and looked at Beelzebub.

To my surprise, where Riku was standing, Ansem glared down at me.

"_**She was MINE**_!_** That's how it was meant to be**_!_** You weren't supposed to happen**_!" His fists clenched and his chest heaved. "_**She's MINE**_!"

I held up my hands in surrender.

"_**Oh no**_," his blade appeared at his side.__"_**You're not getting out that easily**_!_** I'm taking care of this problem right here, right now**_."

So I did the sensible thing…

…And got the fuck out of there.


	20. Skeletons and Zombies

Twenty

"Ow…" I whimpered, peeling the soiled cloth away from my fresh burn.

I tried to return to the mansion. Riku was anticipating that and launched a fireball at me. Now both my arms suck.

"Fuck…" I moaned, tenderly rubbing the cream I five-fingered on the shiny and scabby flesh. It immediately soothed and cooled the objecting skin.

"Thank you modern medication," I mumbled around the end of the bandage clamped in my teeth, leaning back to wrap it tighter around my arm. It took more effort than preferred (I'm much better at getting myself injured than healing myself). But I managed to make a firm wrap.

I put the First-Aid kit back into my pack.

First things first, I need a better outfit. Mine was torn and stained and mildew-y. I needed a bath too.

I pulled out the items I managed to jack from a charity garage sale (yes, I'm a bad person. I thought we established this long ago). A dress, sunglasses, boots, gloves, bath stuff, sewing kit, and money (from the parents, not the till)—not too shabby.

I scrubbed myself with daisy (Riku's second least favorite scent) body wash, topping it off with some cheap perfume.

Try and catch me now Rover.

I stared at myself in the mirror of the house I just broke into.

I had pulled up my hair, securing it in a messy bun. The sunglasses were large and covered most of my face. My breast band was off, which made me look a little like a member of the feminine sex. And the dress was a subtle violet, with a knee-length skirt and t-shirt sleeves. The boots were ugly old cowboy ones.

As quickly as I snuck in, I forced all my old gear in my pack and hurried back out the window I broke.

I left the bath stuff. Just to throw them off.

000

Thank Cthulhu for Janice's lessons in pick pocketing. I'd never get anywhere without them.

I purchased the ridiculously expensive silver mythril-infused cotton cloak. It wouldn't tear, so I was game.

And the sleeves were nice and flow-y.

Of course, cutting it was a pain in the ass. I had to separate strands of cotton and metal for hours. Finally, I got the same cut as my old one.

This time I bought leather leggings; those will at least protect me. Sure, they were hot as hell, but my legs were safe.

Seeing as my broken arm was always getting in the way, I tied it to myself (like I did with Roxas' fight) underneath the robe and turned the sleeve inside out, tying a knot to keep it there. Everything else was made to be of use to my left hand.

Great, I'm doing everything left-handed. Whee.

On the bright side, I got new boots again! They were flexible soft leather with steel in the foot and toe. Good for speed and dexterity. Not so much for power and strength.

And, my personal favorite, I plucked birds and wild animals in order to regain my magic ability. Those little bastards don't like it when you rip off pieces of them. Who knew?

You know, I should really consider using that once in a while. Magic, I mean. Not little bastards.

"Are you a nobody?" A deep take on that perpetually soothing old voice tentatively asked, interrupting my inner monologue.

I spun around.

Sora (in clothes that were _way_ too small) and his two animal buddies stared at me with wide eyes.

Calmly, I shook my head.

"What are you?"

I opened my mouth…and shut it.

Satoru's mute, remember?

I picked up a nearby stick, carving chicken scratch into the moist dirt.

**SATORU**.

"What a coincidence! My sister was called that for a while!" He paused, "Why don't you talk?"

**MUTE**.

"Gawrsh!" The dog interrupted our moment of sibling bonding. "We're sorry."

"Way to be insensitive Sora!" The duck snarled in the most nasally voice known to man…er, fowl.

Ten munny says I'll be sick of their voices within three minutes. Any takers?

"Why do you have so many weapons?"

Shit…what did they call those zombies again?

**SOULLESS**.

"Soulless?" Sora frowned.

"You mean 'Heartless', hyuck?"

Do. Not. Strangle. The. Puppy.

I nodded.

The conversation pretty much went downhill from there.

"Well Satoru, it was nice meeting you." Without another word they were gone.

Yeah, as if. Not on my watch. I picked up my pack, put it on, and followed them discreetly.

000

I caught my first glimpse of a nobody later that evening. I heard Janice describe them, but I still didn't expect what I got.

"There's too many of them!"

I've been following them all day, and this is the first piece of action I've gotten!

I peeked around the corner. My brother and his strange friend were surrounded by what could only be described as reanimated skeletons.

Skeletons and zombies. What next, griffins?

A black cloaked figure jumped out of nowhere.

"THE KING!"

Sheesh! Are you _trying_ to attract zombies? Dumb asses.

The little black-clad mouse squeaked something and handed them a bag. They hurried into the train station, leaving 'The King' alone with those skeletons.

I leapt from concealment, twirling my favorite sai and slamming it into a skeleton's neck.

See, if you sever the spine, they're rendered useless. Genius!

It burst into dust, and I stumbled back, coughing.

Another one caught me in the back.

I twirled, slamming my boot across its face and getting this one's neck too. I held my breath though.

They were flexible, swaying to unheard music. I danced a different tune, one of death and destruction. Within moments, they were all gone.

I felt something press in between my shoulder blades.

"Drop the weapon and turn around slowly," The King snarled. "I know who you are, _Satoru_."

I had nothing else to do. I dropped my sai and slowly faced him.

"I need your help," I whispered, pulling off my hood.

His eyes widened, "S—Sara? What are you doing here? And in that outfit? Where is Satoru?"

"I need you to keep a secret for me, ok?"

He nodded. "Just tell me what's going on!"

"My name is Sara. The Sara you know is the embodiment of Kingdom Hearts.

"Your Majesty, I'm the Gatekeeper."

000

"Riku's not in his room," Janice rushed downstairs. "I can't find him anywhere."

"He left. The moment Sora awoke, he just walked out," DiZ replied coolly.

"Oh, and obviously the best thing to do is _let_ the kid with emotional problems walk out of our lives. Sounds _fantastic_." I snapped, sick and tired of irresponsible adults.

I'm barely fifteen! I'm not supposed to be making choices like this!

"Where is my brother going?"

"To see a great wizard. I can't get you there, I'm sorry."

Janice interrupted my protest, "Then how do we track him?"

"T—track him? I…I don't…"

"Stow the complaints, we need this kid. Tell us how to keep an eye on him!"

He sighed. "There's a unique molecular makeup of the gummi ship. Any source of magic can detect the magic infused in the craft. As Kingdom Hearts, you should have no trouble keeping an eye on him."

"And Riku?"

"I can guarantee, where Sora and Janice are, he'll be."

"Janice," I turned. "How would you feel about becoming Sara again?"

"Twin telepathy. It won't work."

"_Damn_!"

"Come on, we need to regroup. And I need a knife-proof uniform too…"

000

"They're in Hallow Bastion," Janice kicked me. "Get up."

I groaned, rubbing my eyes. "What time is it?"

"Well, in the outside world, it's three in the morning."

"Are you fucking crazy?" I sat up, "This is bullshit."

"Look, if we're gonna find Riku, you gotta stick to that worthless brother of yours like glue."

"He's not worthless! Shut up!"

"Whatever! Just follow the idiot around and make sure he doesn't die. If Riku sees you protecting Sora, he'll trust you more. Or try to kill you again. Either way, he'll pop up at some point."

"Something tells me I'm never gonna get any sleep…"

000

"Why? Just…_why_?" I murmured, dragging myself along. Behind my dumb ass brother, another group of skeletons and zombies appeared.

Once again, I killed them.

Sheesh, he and that ninja defeat about five of them and they automatically assume there's nothing left.

"_Like we're gonna say no?"_

"_I forgot who I'm dealing with."_

"_Hey! What do you mean by that?"_

"_Just think of it as sort of a Leon compliment."_

The door swung open. I cursed under my breath as it hit me in the nose and pressed me against the wall.

Damn. This better not be my new thing.

"_Follow me to the bailey—there's something you need to see."_

A highly attractive brunette strolled out of the building. A weird swirl/bouncing sound rang out.

"_Oh,"_ an old geezer voice croaked. _"I thought it was you. Right on time!"_

"_It's Merlin!"_

No shit Sherlock.

"_Sora and the gang said they're gonna help out!"_

"_Splendid! We'll count on you!"_

Oh dear sweet Cthulhu…that's a lotta zombies and skeletons I'll have to fight. I can already feel the varying degrees of burns I'll end up getting…

The things we do for the ones we love…I slipped out from behind the door and hurried after Dreamy McDreamface.

But not before I heard them freak out about their membership cards.

_I'd like to see them remain that cheerful when they get the first of the advertisements in the mail._

_You're one sarcastic bitch, ya know that?_

_Eh…it's why you hate me._

000

As those idiots stared at that pretty little castle, I fought off hordes and hordes of skeletons and zombies. My new and improved costume was coming to good use.

"_There's still a lot of work to do, but I'm pretty sure we can handle everything. Except…for that...and that."_

Oh Cthulhu, watch them figure out a way to tack that job on me.

"_We'll handle 'em!"_

And in that statement, I was officially responsible for decimating an army of several thousand undead minions. I sighed and slumped to the floor.

_Just another Tuesday?_

_Just another Tuesday._

"But the ones we need to worry about are the nobodies."

"And those Organization XIII guys too!"

"You called?"

And in that statement, I was officially responsible for a highly noticeable enemy's infiltration through a very open road. Aren't I a great protector?

_No._

_Shut up, you're not helping._

Suddenly, those skeletons started pouring in by the bucketful. I growled and jumped to my feet. No time for self-pity.

I've got a brother to save.

000

"Oopsy daisy," I came back in time to watch a Californian beach bum psychologically fuck with my brother.

"Move!"

"Now, do you think that's polite, shutting me down like that?"

This all seemed rather pointless, but I found out why he was doing this.

A gloved hand covered my face, holding a rag over my nose and mouth. My eyes widened when I recognized the sweet stench.

The person grabbed my arm before I could elbow them.

"I'm sorry," a whiny little voice whispered in my ear. "I didn't want to do this. They always make me do this. Look, we just have some things planned for your brother…things that would work better if the Gatekeeper was in our hands…"

He was still talking when the chloroform knocked me out.


	21. Dragons And Fake Boys Aplenty

Twenty-One

"Get up Satoru, you're not dead."

I felt a too-firm kick to the side. My training had taught me how to suffer in silence, so I merely rolled over and got to my feet.

Riku glared down at me.

I waved cheerfully, making his expression even darker.

"I get it. You won. Sara's your girl. Now shut up."

I frowned and crossed my arms. He rolled his eyes.

"Whatever. You saved Sora, huh? And the Organization wants you for something. That makes you my ally." He grabbed my collar and yanked me forward, glaring at me through the cotton. I shivered.

"Listen well. If I have any reason to believe you're playing me, any at all, your body'll be found in a ditch."

I nodded, too scared to breathe. Riku would never do that to me, right?

"Hell, if I get any sort of bad feeling whatsoever, you won't be alive to speak about it." He smirked, "Not that you would anyway."

Wow. What a dick. I pursed my lips and pried his hands off of me.

To my surprise, he pulled a notebook and a pen out of his cloak. "We'll have to communicate."

I pointedly motioned to my bound arm. He sighed and held the notebook steady so I could write.

I made sure to be extra sloppy.

**WHERE START?**

"We follow Sora. Sara's safe with the King, I know it. So we stick with Sora."

I began to write, but he yoinked the pen out of my grasp.

"I don't care. Let's move."

I sighed, glaring at him as he strode away.

"_Dick_." I muttered, hurrying to follow him.

000

"A heartless!"

Riku caught me as I rushed forward. "Don't be an idiot. It's an optical illusion."

How immature would it be if I referred to him as Dicky McDickface? Have I overused that?

"Y—you're a…a_ girl_?" I smiled at the look on Sora's face when he realized that 'Ping' wasn't as masculine as she attempted to appear.

_The secret to pretending to be of the opposite gender is casual-ness. You need to look natural. And pretend you're mute._

Riku snorted. "Only an idiot would be tricked by something as obvious as a girl pretending to be a boy."

_Ironic._ Janice's emotions cut in.

_No kidding._

"I think it's working!" Mulan grinned up at the red rat thing. I picked up the pen and braced the notepad on the rock we were hiding behind.

**LOSE THE SALAMANDER AND SHE MIGHT HAVE A SHOT**

Riku turned away when he read it, but I heard the chuckle.

"I don't know…those two would fall for anything."

"I'm right _here_!"

000

**THIS IS SAD**

"I hear ya there," Riku mumbled, handing me another pretzel. I gnawed modestly. Back at the Academy, we never knew when our next meal was. Riku on the other hand (being a total rich kid) always carried snacks with him.

In an almost fond silence we watched chaos ensue in the camp below us—Sora was in a headlock, the duck was pouncing on someone, and Mulan and Mutant-Dog-Man-Bear-Pig were standing wide-eyed like the useless tools they were.

"Please!"

**OH BOY**

"No kidding," He popped another pretzel into his mouth. In my mind, I flashed to the movie night. Him with his arm around me, watching the screen uninterestedly, popping a Skittle into his mouth. It seemed so long ago. Like, twenty chapters or something.

He met my gaze. "What?"

**DIRT ON FACE**

"Thanks," he rubbed his cheek where I directed him to.

"Whose side are you on? I just got slugged!"

"Want some more?"

"Soldiers! Get back in line!"

As a fairly attractive (on a scale from one to Riku, he was maybe a six) Asian patrolled the line, I noticed little splotches of black forming on the ground outside of camp. I tugged on Riku's sleeve and pointed.

He shook me off, "Jeez, give them a chance. They're better than you think." I pulled a little harder and bounced. He smacked my hand away.

I cradled it, grimacing. That was a lot harder than I expected. Figures. That's what happens when you disobey the authority.

"_You're weak!"_

"Sheesh, you're acting like Sara. They'll be fine."

To my surprise, they were. All they had to show for it was a lack of breath.

000

Riku was a lazy ass. All throughout the labors, he just sat and watched. I (on the other hand) got up close and personal from an invisible spot.

I rubbed my shoulder; still sore from dragging rocks away from the wall (it made it easier for them to destroy the barrier, thus making them seem awesome).

"You deserve it, I told you not to go."

I frowned, about to mentally ream him out when I noticed the smoke. I tugged on Riku's sleeve and pointed.

Once again, he brushed me off. "Chill man! You're such a _girl_."

I stomped my foot and waved my hand.

"Fine. Sheesh."

Sora and his gang beat us there, clustered around a bleeding Captain Six-On-The-Sexy-Scale.

**WHO DID THIS?**

"That Hun dude." Riku sighed. "Come on; let's just keep a better eye on them before they get hurt." He looked at me pointedly. I put my hands on my hips.

**I HAVE**

In response (because he knew I was right), he yanked my talking devices and put them away.

Dicky McDickface.

"Shang, if you track down the villagers, we'll deal with the heartless."

The poor man was practically unconscious. Sora and the others made a break for the summit. Riku and I barely hid in time.

"Help What's-His-Face. I'll take care of the heartless."

Before I could remind him that I'm better, he was gone.

Well _fuck_ him.

I strolled forward…and promptly remembered my communication method hidden in one of Riku's many pockets.

Oh well, it's not like he'll tell anyone.

"Hey," I knelt beside the bleeding man. "My name's Sara. I'm here to help you."

His eyes narrowed, "A…g—girl…"

I pulled my hood away from my face. "I'm a warrior. Just like you. I've been training since I was a child. You'll need to trust me when I say I'm Sora's guardian."

"The…the boy?"

"Sit tight," I pressed a potion into his shaking hands. "Drink this. I'll scavenge for survivors."

000

"Come _on_!" I screamed, holding the flaming frame in my bare hands. "GO!"

The frightened family scrambled out, cradling their young child protectively. They wouldn't even let ash touch them. The other villagers I rescued immediately came to their aid.

"_A girl?"_

"_She saved my daughter—pulled her right out of the ground."_

"_She dug me out from under a roof. She's stronger than most men."_

"_Look at the way she's just holding that fire!"_

"_She's a gift from the ancestors!"_

"_I wanna be like her when I grow up!"_

"_Me too!"_

"_No, me!"_

I pried up another felled wall. A young boy blinked his ashy eyes in surprise.

"Time to go little fella."

He scrambled out. I dug through the cold powder for his parents.

The father was unconscious under a burning beam. I scooped some snow into my hands and hefted it up. A local villager dragged him out.

The mother was half-buried, too weak to dig her way out. With ease, I scooped the snow off of her and carried her to the villagers.

I love how small these Asians are.

"Any more?"

"N—no." They looked at their decimated village. I immediately felt a pang of guilt for tearing it apart.

"Sorry about that," I nodded toward the destruction. "I guess I didn't really help with the rebuilding."

"It's because of you that we're all alive. We owe you our lives."

I took a step back from the advancing crowd. "Well, uh…"

"Can we get your name?"

"Yes! The name of our savior!"

"The girl from the ancestors!"

"Hero!"

"Gift!"

"_Savior_!"

I held out my hands, "Uh…look, I gotta go. There's more of those bad guys. Set up a hospital ward and hunker down for a while."

"Your name!"

"Gift us with your name, girl!"

I sighed, realizing they wouldn't let me through without satisfaction.

"Sara Cho."

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

The whisper spread throughout the crowd. My face burned as I slipped through, trying to ignore the chanting of my name.

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

They followed me to the remains of the gate, repeating my name over and over again. Even the little ones joined in—the ones that couldn't talk. Shang waited for me.

"Stay with them," I commanded in my most authoritive voice. "The zombies will come back, no doubt."

"Zombies?"

I waved him off, "Never mind. Just help!" I pulled my hood back up, rubbing the ash off my face with some snow and tearing for the summit.

000

I caught up to Riku, slicing through a zombie that was about to bite his ass (literally).

He nodded his thanks. I just slashed another and lunged with my sai.

Battle was easy. I could kill. I bounced about, twirling and leaping and striking with the grace of a cobra. That was my thing.

The only part that threw off my groove was my head. In my head, I just heard that chant.

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

"_Sara."_

Why? Why did they care? I'm just a girl.

_It's called hope. When all was lost, you were there to pull them out of the fire. You gave them hope. No doubt you'll be in their stories for years to come._

_Shut up Janice._

I put my sai away and pulled out my sword. I was slightly off-balance with the hill and my awkward grip, but it could've been worse.

Together we fought at the top of the hill, just out of sight of Sora. So many pushed through and flowed down the hill, _too_ many. But we couldn't go down that hill. They would see us.

"_Brats_!"

We both perked up at the snarl, used to being referred to as that.

On a scale from one to Riku, this guy was a negative Riku. Draped in fur with beady black eyes and corpse-gray skin…it was a wonder that this guy didn't start knowing on my head and screaming for brains. (Do you get the hint? He's a _zombie_)

"Oh boy." Riku murmured. All around us, zombies flows over the top and poured to the battlefield below. There was nothing we could do though; the corpse was rushing at us with his sword drawn. That eagle of his pushed off…

"ArgH!" Riku covered his face as a talon ripped through his cheek.

_The hook tore through my skin like a hot knife through butter. Spots swam before me, and I could feel tears begin to slide down my cheeks. Pulsating stings shot through my central nervous system like there was no fucking tomorrow._

I kicked his oh-so-fine ass, knocking him into the snow face-first. Then I launched a throwing knife at the bird, grinning as it hit his wing and threw him off course. Then I cut my right arm free.

I dodged the first blow, undoing the knot in my sleeve. I couldn't bear my chest to Riku for obvious reasons, so I had to do this.

Have you ever done Jazzercise? There's this one exercise where you hop to each side really fast. Well, I was doing this to avoid the blade as I struggled to get my stiff, splinted arm through its sleeve. Finally, I managed to place a sai in my palm and close my fingers around it fairly tightly (for the pinkie that wouldn't move, I manually curled it).

I slashed. I lunged. I parried with my left and stabbed with my right.

Dodge, slash, jump, parry. Parry, stab, lunge, leap. Roll, kick, bite, jump. Cartwheel, leap, lunge, dodge. It became a song, with my actions being the steps and the clashing of steel being the music. Jump, dodge, slash, lunge. Stab, slice, pain, retreat. Kick, fall, roll, wiggle. Jump, slash, flip, punch.

Riku lay limp in the snow, hopefully allowing the numbness to sink in. The bird circled, returning. Shan Yu caught me on the broken arm, knocking the sai out of my weak hand.

I swung my foot, catching his knee. I felt something pop and looped my leg in-between his, yanking back. He hit the ground and I planted my knees on my arm.

It was the same with Meerkah. Punch, punch, punch, punch, punch. I kept punching until my left hand went numb.

And here's how I know I'm insane.

I grabbed my broken arm, and slammed it into his bleeding face. Another spurt of red hit my face, but I gritted my teeth and smashed it again.

SLAM!

SLAM!

SLAM!

His face was getting harder to recognize, his struggles getting weaker.

I was beating someone to death with a broken arm.

That damn bird ruined it. Its irritating little claws caught my back, yanking me off the messy pile of meat and into the snow. I growled and got back up.

They were already tearing down the hill, the last of the heartless behind them.

"Fuck!" That guy was a monster! Sora didn't stand a chance!

I hurried back to Riku, flipping him over.

He was unconscious. I noticed a lump beginning to form on his forehead.

Heh…oops.

The ground began to rumble.

"Huh?"

A clump of snow slammed into my shoulder.

I looked up.

The mountain was coming down on us.

"Oh God!"

I spun around, looking desperately for a place to escape to. I only had one working arm and an unconscious man-boy. There was only one thing to do.

I fell to the ground, covering Riku's face and neck with my scrawny body.

_"So you have to kinda save me from a bunch of bad people who want to harvest all the power I have stored, which you can totally help yourself to anytime you need a pick-me-up."_

"Please let this work," I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut as the start of the snow hit me…

_One pick-me-up, coming right up!_

I couldn't feel a thing. The snow kept falling and falling, burying the two of us alive. But nothing came out of it.

I'm not sure how long I stayed like that, on all fours, arched around Riku's head. It seemed like forever before the ground stopped shaking. Yet I didn't feel it.

Riku's breathing got fainter. I noticed the snow pushing on his chest.

He was being crushed!

I had to work fast. I looped my bad arm under his right arm, wrapping it around his torso. I yanked.

Nothing.

With another growl, I pulled.

He slipped a little.

I put my feet into it, using my good arm to dig.

Slowly, he began to slide out.

"Come on," I hissed, scrambling. My feet sunk into the snow. I groaned and wriggled, thrashing my upper arm violently.

And then there was nothing for my hand to grab.

We were just an arm's length under the top!

I pulled, trying to loosen the snow above us. It was slow process, way too slow.

I pushed Riku's head out first, easing his limp form to the surface. Using him as an anchor, I tugged myself up.

Air never tasted so sweet. I gasped and gulped, unaware of the strain recently put on my body.

Ignoring my exhaustion, I crawled over to Riku and pressed my ear to his mouth.

Nothing. He wasn't breathing.

I tilted his head back and cradled it, pinching his nose and prying his mouth open.

I paused.

Oh my Cthulhu.

I have to kiss him.

A million thoughts swarmed my head. _What if he wakes up? What if my breath is bad? What if he's mad? What if he dies?_

My mouth ran dry as I leaned forward.

The moment I pressed my open mouth to his, I relaxed. It was nothing like our make out on his back porch. I got nothing out of this. I breathed out three times and pressed into his chest eight.

Three…eight…

Three…eight…

Three…eight…

He wasn't waking up.

"WAKE UP DAMN YOU!" I slammed my fists onto his chest with all my might.

His eyes shot open and he recoiled, gasping and choking for air.

As he thrashed with the oxygen, I let exhaustion take hold, slumping into his warm, nice-smelling chest…

000

We both regained consciousness at about the same time.

I tried to stand, to hide the weakness, but my legs gave out.

"Easy," Riku chuckled and wrapped one of my arms around his shoulder, hunching down so my feet barely touched the floor. "Come on."

His other hand slipped under the bottom of my bodice, just at the small of my back.

_Oh my…is he touching your butt?_

Come to think of it, his fingers were pressing into my…

_Oh my Cthulhu…he IS._

I reflected on this all the way down the mountain.

Thankfully, the village was barren. They must've left for the celebration of the death of Shan Yu.

I stared up at the mountain again.

I didn't like the guy, but that really was a bad way to die. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Not Hook, not Sensei, not Janice, not even the guy who burned the mall down.

"Get that potion…_please_."

It was the desperation in his voice that drew me to respond. I wriggled out of his grasp and picked one up from the pile of medical supplies. He nodded his thanks and downed it.

The purple gash on his face melted together, disappearing without a trace.

He tossed the bottle aside. "You need one."

I shook my head. It's not like it would help anyway.

"Look at you; you can hardly stand as it is!"

I made a grabbing motion, pantomiming writing on something.

He pulled out the little notebook and pen.

**FOOD**

He nodded, "I hear ya there. Let's get some grub before checking on the sap."

Even though it was at the extent of my favorite person in the universe, I had to crack an exhausted grin at that.


	22. That's Why Cthulhu Invented Moth Balls

Twenty-Two

Riku gave up on following Sora after the avalanche incident. He broke three ribs, and is actually on bed rest in some alternate reality.

Yeah, apparently becoming a dweller of darkness allows you to fuck with the space-time continuum.

"Any sign of him?"

Janice didn't even open her eyes. She just continued meditating like I wasn't pestering her. "Not since the last time you asked…five minutes ago."

"Damn."

"Have you ever considered getting him drunk and having sex with him? Seriously, you two just keep dancing around the issue. You're both madly in love. You both know perfectly well that the other is madly in love as well. Just fucking kiss already!"

"It's a little hard to hook up when I'm pretending to be my own boyfriend. He hates my ass."

"And what a sexy ass that is," she opened her eyes just to wink at me.

In that moment, we started that long journey towards friendship.

I smacked it, grinning mischievously, "It's a good thing I'm always covered up. He wouldn't be able to handle two of us."

She smiled hesitantly, "I must say, I've never spoken to a guy before. Riku's my first."

"And…?"

"And what?"

"How do you like the opposite sex?"

"Eh," she shrugged. "I prefer girls. That's why I always make sure my keepers are female."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa…you _make sure_ they're female?"

She opened one eye. "Didn't I tell you? You were originally male."

"I—" In that moment, I decided to fuck serenity, "_WHAT_?"

She grinned and shut her eyes again. "Go save your brother."

"Is he in trouble?" Panic began to seep into my system by the bucket. Janice must've sensed it, because she smiled.

"Relax bitch. He's fine. That's your new thing, right?"

With a sigh, I threw my hood up. "Activate the door."

000

I flicked a spider off of my shoulder, trying not to cough.

The only place I could sneak in to was the wine cellar. Everywhere else was infested with dancing silverware (no, I will not "be your guest", leave me alone). The owner of this damn castle really needs to call an exterminator.

I picked a fat wad of dust off of my hood.

Sheesh, is this guy twenty years sober or something?

I had reached the trap door and pushed, eager to leave this dust pit.

It didn't budge.

I groaned, making my way back to the outside.

I _really_ need a Keyblade.

000

It didn't take much to become a girl again. All I needed was a cutesy dress and a ribbon. All periwinkle of course…yep!

I pulled my shoulder-length hair into a high ponytail, tying it with a periwinkle ribbon. I smoothed the folds of the flowing skirt and tugged my white socks up a little higher.

I knocked on the door.

"Shit."

See, my plan was beat the person who opened the door. It's a little hard when _nobody opens the door_.

I took out my hunting knife, lifting it above my head, planning to stab the doorknob. That usually works.

It swung open.

See, anyone would freak out if they saw an adorably dressed girl in a frilly blue dress, knee-high socks, and Mary-Janes holding a large serrated knife above her head with an incredibly pissed-off expression on her face.

The fact it was my brother at the door just made it that much worse.


	23. Now For Something Completely Different

Twenty-Three

"_SARA_?"

I stared at him open-mouthed. My hand still in the air, knife still bared.

"Uh…well I…hmm, how can I explain this one?"

"Why don't you start with _how you got that knife_?" My _oh so wonderful_ brother snatched my _very expensive and souped up_ knife, pocketing it. I sighed and pulled the covering out of my pocket.

"It's so you don't rip your pretty clothes," I responded to his look.

"Sara, how did you get the knife?"

I crossed my arms, "No, 'where the hell have you been'?"

"Oh, that's coming. But right now I'm a little more concerned with the weapon. You know, you could've _killed_ someone with this!"

It wouldn't be the first time.

"No way!" I gasped, "Sharp objects _kill_ people?"

"No sarcasm. I'm serious." His eyes narrowed, "Where did you get the knife?"

"Gawrsh…who is that?"

"It's his sister, ya big palooka!"

"Oh yeah…"

"Uh…" I leaned to the side, waving at the mutated creatures. "Hi. I'm Sara. I don't know you."

"Donald and Goofy," Sora snapped. "Back to the weapon!"

"Fine!"

We both paused while I came up with a good explanation.

_Help?_

_Fucking wing it._

_I suck at improv!_

_Suck less then!_

"I'm waiting."

"I'm sure you are. I'm waiting too. Usually your short-term memory loss kicks in by now."

"HEY!" He grabbed my arm and dragged me into the mansion. "Ok, I'm serious. _Where did you get the weapon_?"

"From my very large collection of weaponry that I keep on my person at all times," I admitted.

_And you tell him the truth. You didn't frame any suspicious men who threatened you at the bar…you tell him the truth. Great job dumbass._

_Fuck you._

_No thank you._

He growled, "If you're not going to take this seriously, then fine! You're not leaving my sight! AND I'm not going to let this one go either!"

"What are you? Mom?"

"_Sara_!"

"Fine," I crossed my arms. "Whatever."

"And no fighting. You'll get in the way."

Gee. Thanks. It's not like I'm better than you or anything.

"In fact, when you see something appear, you hide. Got it?"

"Sieg heil, mein Führer!"

He growled, thrusting my arm away. "Promise me."

"Sieg heil…"

"Sara!"

"Fine! I promise." I held out my hand, "Do we need to add pinkie to it? Or is this all I have to do?"

"I'm holding you to your word. If you stay out of danger, I'll bring you to some friends of mine. They'll keep you safe."

"And if I _don't_ stay out of danger? 'Coz this 'safety' thing sounds like shit."

"I'll drop everything and take you to an army camp."

"Sweet!"

"_SARA_!"

"Ok…" I held up my hands. "I stay out of the way and go to your special friends. I get it."

_Are you really going with him?_

_Hell no. I'll lie my way out of that. Or you'll pretend to be me and pretend to kidnap me or something._

_I'm liking that idea. See, it's thoughts like this that get us out of trouble._

_Blatant dishonesty that leads to heartbreak?_

_Eh…don't knock it 'till you try it._

_Whatever you say._

A loud roar rumbled through the corridors, knocking over wall hangings. I flinched at the crash of shattering glass and looked to my…tall brother.

Hot damn, I'm short.

"What was that?"

And then I noticed something that really made my blood boil.

In his hand was a giant key.

_That's Emer's Keyblade!_ A wave of fury coiled in my stomach, and I wasn't sure who it belonged to. Thanks to my brother, the one person I could always rely on, I was weaponless.

Useless.

_Weak_.

"Hypocrite," I growled, following him down the hall morosely.

000

I've never had a best friend. I've always just mooched off of my brother's acquaintances.

Clarisse was my first.

I was crouching behind a statue when a wine glass approached me.

"Girlfriend, you're kinda useless."

"Tell me about it."

You see, in the past year, I've seen so much unbelievable shit that a talking alcoholic beverage didn't faze me. Hell, I could watch someone be dismembered and all that would come to mind would be a critique.

"That's it? No _'oh my God'_?"

"Yep," I winced as that beast-thingy cuffed Sora in the stomach, knocking the air out of him. "Ferocious, ain't he?"

"That, and thanks to him I'm a wine glass. I mean, I wasn't _that_ much of an alcoholic. I tell you, the moment this curse is broken, I'm fucking out."

"Curse?"

"What? You think the master was _born_ hairy?" The neutral-gendered object snorted. "He was a dick. And then this witch came in the form of a beggar. He was his usual dick self, and she proclaimed him a beast. And for shits and giggles, she cursed the rest of us too." It sighed. "I washed dishes. I didn't even see the master when I was working!"

"That…sucks…?"

"No kidding. So now I'm a piece of walking glass. Actually, hopping glass. I don't have legs."

"Ouch."

"Yep. And nobody even likes me because I haven't come up with a witty name like 'Mrs. Potts' or 'Cogsworth'."

"Oh. I'm sorry." Sora took another bad hit.

It nudged me. "So, what's your story?"

"I don't have one."

"Sure ya don't." It rolled its eyes. "I've grown up with a killers and thieves. Why don't you start with how you got that desperate look in your eyes?" It leaned forward, "You've killed. You've stolen. You've done everything you needed to."

I sighed.

"I don't need this right now."

Before it could reply, Sora screamed. I snapped up just as he was falling down. A talking clock cried for someone to wake up. Useless effort if you asked me. He looked dead.

The monster stood over my brother, lifting a claw. Where are the animals?

They were down for the count as well. Some help _they_ were.

Once again, it's up to Sara.

"NO!" I stepped out of the shadows, reaching for my necklace…

They looked up just as I grabbed the string of bones at my neck.

_We all disappeared. Nobody is here but you._

Chaos ensued.

"MASTER!" The clock screeched, running in circles. The other little silverware and cookery joined in the cry, calling for their mother, their son, their leader, their master…

The monster just snorted his satisfaction and retreated to his cave.

I hurried after him, keeping my hand on my necklace. If I broke contact with the conduit, the spell would be rendered obsolete.

I rooted through Sora's pockets. It took a couple tries (does he _really_ need that many pockets? Come on…), but I found those bottles that he tried to use on me so long ago.

"Uh…" I stared at the ping-pong-ball-sized vials in my hand.

"They have _colors_?"

Ok, think. There were five colors in all. Blue, green, red, sparkly blue, and sparkly green. Was there a difference?

_Try the blue one_.

Blue…like Uncle Mitsuo's favorite color. I beamed proudly and uncorked it, dumping it on my brother.

And letting go of the necklace.

The monster wheeled, staring me down.

My stomach dropped just as his chest heaved.

"Oops."


	24. Flying to Death

Twenty-Four

Apparently skill is nothing when put up against brute strength. I discovered this when I was launched across the room and out the window.

In that moment of flight, as my body arched over itself and twisted in the air, I heard the wine glass scream. I never knew its name.

About a year later, she'd show up on my doorstep, introduce herself as Clarisse, and we'd be immediate friends. But at this moment I was soaring to my death.

I stared at the fluttering shards of colored glass, wondering what they made when they were put together. I never looked at the window. Was it beautiful? I wondered.

I stretched my hand out to the moon, willing my fingers to run through its creamy satiny goodness.

_I looked up just in time to see fingers of red grasping at the black silk sky, trying to grab that last bit of life, hoping to pull itself back up before it dissolved into nothing._

_Is that what's going to happen to me? I'm just going to go like that, hands outstretched, reaching for something I'll never get?_

Time began to catch up. I stopped flying out and began flying down.

I crashed through the surface of the river, sinking like a rock. Sinking like a boat. My legs rumbled as I hit the ground, and I knew the odds of me walking away without a scratch were slim.

Usually one floats to the surface. I never did. I kept sinking…deeper into the swirling black water.

A flash of bubbles. A figure speeding towards me.

An arm around my waist, another on my arm. Pushing off. Flying again.

Cold. So cold.

I was carried gently to the shore, placed softly on a bed of grass.

"Riku?" I whispered, trying to see.

The face lit by the moonlight was one I never thought I'd see again.

"Hello Sara," Meerkah smiled tightly.


	25. Really? REALLY?

Twenty-Five

"Look, I know you hate me."

I didn't answer. I just stared at her numbly. That shit scares the daylights outta her.

"But hear me out, ok?"

"I'm listening."

"The Academy endorses the slave trade."

I blinked.

She leaned forward, "_the slave trade_."

"I know."

She sighed, "You ran away just in time. They started shipping us all off after you left."

"Uh…I was the first one they sold."

"What?"

I rolled my eyes, "You're not that surprised."

She smirked, "You still haven't lost your touch."

_Oh Cthulhu, is she for real?_

I rolled my eyes again. "Enough with the sucking up. I get it. What am I supposed to _do_ about it?"

"We're gonna save them." She crossed her arms. "You and me. I got some of the others, and you sorta fell into my lap. It's perfect. With you on our side, we _can't_ fail!"

_It's a trap._

_You couldn't tell?_

"What's in it for me?" I examined my nails uninterestedly.

_Course of action?_

_Let's figure out who the fuck is going this extreme to get to us._

_What if it's just Meerkah?_

_Come on. That bitch can hardly tie her own shoes. She's just good at looking scary and cheap shots. Someone else is pulling the strings._

_Then let's see who this puppet master is._

"…save them from the worst experience of their lives! Don't you want to keep them from living our hell?"

_OUR hell? Ok, this is borderline pathetic._

I stretched, pretending to mull it over.

"Fine," I consented after a moment of "deliberation". "Where's our base?"

She grinned that smarmy smile I hate so much. "Hollow Bastion."

_Giant castle full of zombies and skeletons? Figures._

_Eh, it sounds like a Tuesday._

I grinned at Janice's joke. "Sounds good!"

000

_All our door traveling made us spoiled._ I mused.

_Not liking the magical train?_

_Hell no._

"Wait," I put my arm on her shoulder. "I'm gonna change. I feel more confident if I have my armor on."

"Well…ok…" I didn't even wait, just wheeled around and marched into the bathroom.

Janice was waiting for me.

We slipped into the big stall. I took off the dress and ribbons, making Janice into the old me. I handed her a Bowie knife.

"You know how to use this?"

"Stab?"

"Good enough," I slipped it into her pocket. "Worst comes to worst, bite their skin and claw their eyes. Aim for the groin with guys and the chest with girls."

"Got it." She pulled my costume out of my bag and handed it to me. Then we stuffed her old clothes into the sack and sent her out.

_What do I say?_

_Too conspicuous. You'll change once you get to headquarters._

I pulled on the costume, pulling up the hood and generating a door.

It's show time.

000

That's when I first met Maleficent. You know, that lady I killed in the first chapter. Yep. Her. She was the one who was so keen on capturing me. Isn't that sweet? When I said 'take care of an annoying problem', I meant it. She's a damn annoying problem.

At first, I underestimated her. That was probably the stupidest mistake I've ever made.

And almost the last one too.


	26. Fish Scales, Roly Poly Fish Scales

Twenty-Six

I think the trouble started when Janice stabbed Meerkah.

After that, the whole plan pretty much fell apart.

I was following in the shadows from a distance, wondering who could be after me this time. Was it Riku? Is he trying to get his last revenge against Satoru?

If that's the case, fuck the façade. I'm taking off the hood, shoving him against a wall, and kissing him until his eyes roll back.

I winced.

Whoa…hormones…didn't see that coming.

Meerkah suddenly stopped.

"So Janice, why isn't Sara here?"

Janice was the better actor of the two of us. She could be the next Angelina Jolie, minus the extreme beauty and poofy lips.

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, "I'm not falling for it. Keep going, we have shit to do."

"Sara had a scar right here," She pointed to a spot next to her mouth. Instinctively, I scrabbled for my face.

My heart sunk as I traced the firm trench in my skin.

_Oops._

"Oh my God," Janice kept it up, rolling her eyes again. "I never had a scar. Where would I get one?"

"Maybe you're right," Meerkah crossed her arms with a smirk. "But I know you're not Sara."

"Alright, I'll humor you. _Why not_?"

"Sara never uses God's name. She always says Cthulhu." Meerkah stalked past her. "So where is she, Janice? You always know everything about everyone, so where's your bitch…?"

I felt a flare of white-hot anger stream through me, and Janice unsheathed the Bowie knife.

"Never. Disrespect. Sara. In. Front. Of. Me." She snarled. Meerkah turned just in time to watch the knife plunge into her chest.

Somebody wrapped an arm around my neck, yanking me back. I squirmed, and something sweet smelling closed over my face.

Chloroform. I've used it a few times myself.

My eyes rolled back, the last sound penetrating my dull eardrums was Janice's scream…

000

I woke up on the floor, staring up at a dank ceiling. Meerkah's cackling rattled through my sore head.

"Good morning Princess," Janice whispered. I turned on my side weakly, my head rattling.

She clutched her shoulder as rivets of blood oozed out of the ripped cotton, her face smeared with bruises. But she gave me a sarcastic eyebrow waggle. "I put in a few good stabs."

"Good." I shut my eyes again.

I have no idea how I got here. I have no idea how long I've been here. Give me ten minutes to sleep and I'll be out of here in no time.

That was three months ago. I learned a few things.

One) Escape attempts result in no food for three days.

Two) That deranged witch ("Maleficent") and Meerkah need a shank to the back like _nobody's _business.

Three) I was steadily growing weaker.

Neither of us knew what was happening. Maleficent was psychotic. She'd just appear in our cell, wave her hands, and green flames would spurt out of the ground and circle us. It always left Janice shaken, but I knew what was happening.

You see, on the first day of the Academy, I was slapped across the face. That was a lesson. By lighting us on fire, Maleficent was teaching us. _I'm in charge. I'm the dominant one. When I say jump, you'll fucking do it._

The worst part?

It was working.

Meerkah used to come down here and laugh, but I broke her nose through the bars. She never came back.

The only person we saw was Maleficent and that weird fat dog thing. Pete I think it was. He brought our food. Although, it was steadily getting more and more meager.

"They're weakening us on purpose," I whispered, tracing an 'X' onto the dirty floor. Communicating telepathically put a new strain on our bodies. This was the end of us deciphering more than broad feelings from one another.

Janice drew an 'O', creating a line I didn't see. She clapped once with forced glee as I wiped away our board.

We've really advanced in the ways of tic-tac-toe. Seriously, we were on 100 boxes. Granted, this was all we'd do for hours on end.

"We need to get out," She whispered. "We'll die…well, _you'll _die. And then it's back to square one for me."

"Wonderful to know that you'd miss me," I slurred, drawing another 'X'.

I honestly wish I could give you more knowledge about our capture. About our stay. All I remember is getting out of the door, and then there's nothing. I woke up on the floor.

I wish I could go on for page after page of nonstop information of what it's like, being locked away in a basement with nobody but Janice. But all I can say is this is my future. I'm going to live this.

So there's no way in fuck I'm going to let her do this now. Not before I've kissed Riku.

I had no strength. I had no weapons. All I had was Janice and I.

And one of my necklaces.

The jar of fish scales.

000

It started when Pete came down with our food. I didn't have anything concrete at the time (I was really just twiddling my thumbs pointlessly), but then those words came out of his mouth.

"Maleficent's not here, it's just me and you."

At that, I popped open the cork, downed the contents, and convinced him we were Maleficent.

"MALEFICENT!" He freaked… "You said…I thought…you weren't…"

"Fool!" I snarled, "Open the door. Their cell is next to ours…err, this one!"

The dumb ass fumbled with the keys, unlocking the door. Janice and I scurried out. I could feel the dust coating my tongue, which strengthened the spell. I managed to appear like we were actually in the other cell and that Maleficent had teleported away mysteriously.

Janice found the room with our weapons. She grabbed a loose bag lying on the floor, unzipping it and stuffing everything into it. She threw it over her shoulder and rushed out the door.

"No."

"_What_?"

I pointed to the wall.

It was paradise. Row after row of medieval weaponry. Knives, swords, staves, etc…One of the most beautiful sights to behold.

"Later," she hissed. "We gotta _go_!"

With some hesitation, I allowed her to drag me away.

We rushed up the staircase, hearing the loud lumbering footsteps of Pete. My saliva was beginning to erode the conduit.

"Hurry!"

The window. That was our only hope. I yanked Janice's arm, directing her toward the open plains…freedom.

Meerkah stepped in between us. "Oh no you…"

I stabbed her in the neck as we slammed right through her. Using my knife as a handle, I dragged her to the window and launched her into the air.

Her limp form fluttered into the endless abyss, disappearing only when the fog began.

"Harsh."

"MASS ESCAPE! ATTACK THE PRISONERS!"

"Never mind that!" I hopped over the sill, tugging her with me. "Think happy thoughts!"

And we jumped, the zombies almost at our toes.

I shut my eyes.

_My fingers ran through his silky hair, eliciting a funny growl. I swirled my tongue around his, relishing a thick musky taste that only Riku could pull off. I giggled as he growled again, and I pulled away for air._

_His face contorted and he pulled me back down._

_His chapped lips rubbed against mine roughly, and nifty zings sparked through me with every crispy brush. His tongue pushed into my mouth forcefully (much like the usual rich kid he is), his calloused hands grasping my jaw as he angled his head for better access. My head swirled in a delicious haze. Slowly, I slipped my fingers underneath his jacket, running them across the warm skin of his belly._

_Something prodded my thigh._

_I pulled away, trying to figure out what it was._

_Like a detective, all it took for me to connect the dots was the look on Riku's extremely red face and a minor flashback to my health-ed class._

_Well, at least he was enjoying himself._

I soared, grasping Janice as I went. I kept going up until the clouds hid us from the world below.

"NOW WHAT?" She screamed over the roaring wind, shivering from the condensation.

"WE HAVE TO DO IT!"

"DO WHAT?"

I've been thinking about this for a long time actually. Something you never ever want to do, and you absolutely hate yourself for letting this thought come into your head. Because once it's there, you know you _have_ to do it.

I sighed, contorting my face, "INVADE THE ACADEMY! WE NEED TO SAVE THOSE KIDS!"


	27. Watch the World Burn

Twenty-Seven

"Alright, nice plan," Janice took a sip of whiskey straight from the bottle (yeah, we're getting our asses hammered…why the hell not?), "Now can we think this through?"

"I'm not nearly drunk enough to come up with a brilliant plan," I beckoned pointedly.

See, being an awesome and emotionally scarred fighter gives you an unnatural tolerance to alcohol. _Bonus_!

"So, why don't we do this _Bastille_ style?"

Her response: she handed me the bottle again. I faithfully gulped down a mouthful.

"Ok, how many of us are there?"

"Two. And one of those can't fight."

"Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiit," I hiccupped. "What weapons do we have? A cannon?"

"That would kill the people we're trying to save. And we only have what's in the bag."

"Which is towels and knives. Great." I took another swig. "How about fire? Can we somehow incorporate fire?"

"That would _kill_ the people we're trying to _save_, dumbshit! Drink again!"

"So that's a no on the fire?"

"It's a _rescue_, not a _siege_!"

"Do we have a Blue-Eyes White Dragon?"

"_What_? No!"

"No Dark Magician either?"

"This isn't working!" She snatched the bottle. I reached, and she used that as a distraction to kick my chair out from under me.

"YaaaAAAAAAGH!" I lay sprawled on the floor of the inn room.

Wait…

Distraction…kick chair out from underneath…_DISTRACTION_…

"I gotta plan!" I snatched the bottle, "And a _serious_ need for a hangover!"

"Sara, if you get hung over, you'll never be able to pull off a rescue."

"That's why _I'm_ not the one getting horrifyingly drunk." I poured the last of it into a glass and put the bottle safely on the pile of towels.

"_You_ are." I got to my feet and conquered the bar. "Drink up! We're gonna need a _lot_ of bottles…"

000

It was a beautiful day, misty and sunny at the same time. That sort of day when you actually _want_ to run the mile in PE. The quaint paper and wood structure loomed above me, screaming doom.

I used to respect this place. Now I'm going to destroy it.

"Huh," I took another messy swig of tequila. I held it above me, gauging the sloshing fluid.

Eh…good enough. I have that nice buzz and it'll still leave a stain.

As I poured, the amber-colored liquid soaked into the white. I grinned.

It looked like gasoline and reeked like an accelerant.

"Genius…I think."

I leapt back with a shriek as the building suddenly burst into flame. I stumbled away from the heat, shuddering as I realized there were _children_ in there…being cooked alive…

"Relax Jan, it's an illusion," Sara pulled me to my feet. "Come on, let's set the perimeter."

"How can you make something this…is that blood? How the…?"

"I slaughtered a chicken and rolled around in it entrails. Then I tied its bones to my legs. I have enough power to keep this going for a while."

"You're batshit insane."

She rolled her eyes and met my gaze, "I've beaten someone's face in with my broken arm, I've stabbed someone in the neck and tossed them into an abyss, I'm currently planning on murdering a ton of people while armed with nothing but empty bottles of alcohol…and you _just_ realized I'm batshit insane?"

"You're batshit insane!"

Sara sighed and pulled up her hood. "I'mma go hide, act like the batshit psycho I am."

Before I could remind her that she's batshit insane, she was fucking _gone_.

"Dear shit," I pulled a bottle of vodka out of my bag, uncorked it, and took a heavy swig. "I've created a monster."

When the head officials of a _fighting school_ came running out to the lawn, I realized something.

We're really fucking stupid. There's no way we can kill these guys with a bunch of dull knives and bottles…it's _crazy_!

"Hey," I waved. "How's it going?"

There, that's something Sara would do. She'd make herself into an idiot by engaging the scary assassins in casual conversation. Yep. I'mma genius.

Another sip.

"_Damn_! This is _good_!"

Children began to scream as the imaginary flames grew high into the morning light. The mist creating an ominous feel to this all.

"Sara Cho."

"Thazzzz me!" I laughed.

Before they could reply, Sara had smashed the first bottle on Sensei's neck. He fell forward, and I noticed Sara's face.

Oh…of course she's only in it for the murdering of all the people who've ever caused her pain. Why didn't I see it before?

As she forced blunt steel into various weak points, I began to connect the dots.

Well, she broke her arm again…dammit. I was getting really sick of setting those.

The men didn't stand a chance, it was early in the morning and they were all objects of Sara's unadulterated hate.

Blood dripped off of Sara's flexing muscles, and thankfully the illusion of fire rippled. I could still hear the children screaming.

Sara was snapping limbs like there was no tomorrow. I checked my pockets for the Bowie knife. Thankfully, it was still there.

Swallowing my fear, I rushed into the Academy.

Sara had absolutely no intention of rescue. That's why she's so keen on lighting everything on fire. In all honesty, it was just like Clockwork Orange. She just wanted to see the world burn.

I sprinted down the hall, throwing open doors left and right. As I suspected, all the older kids were gone. It was a fresh-faced crop of children. Most knew how to fight, but the core learning hasn't kicked in yet.

"Get out the back! This is a rescue! No, it's not real fire! You! You, go up to the second floor and get everyone out the back entrance. You, get the third floor. You, find the servants. You, check the basement. You, you, and you, round up the kids outside and get them to the meadow out back. Hurry!"

Children ran left and right, too scared to question my orders.

"Hurry!" I shrieked up the stairwell. The poor little kids scrambled even faster, tumbling all over themselves. A few of the braver ones took it upon themselves to organize the evacuation.

We didn't have much time. I knew Sara. I saw the lighter.

As soon as those men die, she's burning this place to the ground.

No matter who's still inside.


	28. Justice Taken, Justice Recieved

Twenty-Eight

"_Look! It's Anxiety Girl!"_

"_Oh, so I'm the one messing with heads? Little Miss Bipolar Freak!"_

"_Hey Anxious, why don't you cry to your mom? Oh wait, you don't have one!"_

"_I'd rather be a 'jerk face' than a manipulative little bitch!"_

"_Get up and stop moping."_

"_You're so stupid. I just want to cry when I look at you."_

"_You think I care?"_

"_Whatever."_

"_Crying is a sign of weakness."_

"_It's not opening!"_

"_I'll beat you. I'm serious."_

"_We're all going to die!" _

"_There's nothing I like more than stamping out the fight in pretty little rebels like you."_

"_You're my little monkey, right?"_

"_Keep it up and I'm selling you to the brothel."_

"_Sara, sometimes I wish you'd just shut up."_

"_Three days no meals. That should teach you a lesson."_

"_God, you're so weird."_

"_Nobody cares. It's time you learned that."_

"_I knew all these violent video games were a bad influence on you! Next thing I know, you'll be killing people and engaging in premarital sex." _

"_Hey, looks like you've got a fever there. Why don't we cool you down?" _

"_You're gonna die little girl! You're gonna DIE!"_

"_What happened to you?"_

"_What happened to you?"_

"_What happened to you?"_

"_What HAPPENED to you?"_

I stared him down, the eyes of the high and mighty headmaster. The leader of this gang. The man who owes me a childhood.

"What…what happened to you?" He rasped, trying to pry the broken glass out of his neck.

I tossed the bottle aside and peeled his arms down, kneeling on his elbows.

"You did."

And I began to hit him. With my arm. The very arm _he_ just broke.

It was like with Shan Yu, only no eagle. I looked him in the eyes and hit. Endlessly. Nonstop. Slam…slam…slam…slam…slam…slam…slam…slam…

That was the most brutal way I've ever killed someone. Years later, his death would still haunt me to the core of my being. Whenever I saw an arm in a cast, I never thought to sign it. All I could see was a weapon. The very weapon that mercilessly bashed a man's face to smithereens.

I plucked the tooth out of my flesh. And I released the illusion. With an involuntary smile, I admired my handiwork.

I've never seen a more beautiful sight. It's like that neoclassical painting of those bodies. They lay on the ground, twisted and battered and unrecognizable.

Mine was much more a part of the realm of modern art. Glass and kitchenware handles stuck out from the contorted faces.

"Justice taken, justice received," I whispered. "It doesn't matter. We're all just corpses in the end."

I reached into my knapsack, pulling out the zippo I five-fingered. "Justice taken, justice received."

I clicked it open, staring into the flame. Inside, all of my stupidly childish hopes and dreams glinted.

I tossed it over my shoulder.

"_I'm gonna survive. And when I do, you better hide. 'Coz I'm gonna kill you._"

I shut my eyes, breathing in deeply. Any moment now, I'd hear the chorus of screams. The screams of the so-called "innocent". Who the hell did they think they are? How can they possibly justify standing there day after day after day, watching me in pain. Watching me hurt. Watching _me_ suffer. They were no better than Meerkah and Sensei…and they deserved no better as well.

_Nothing._

"What?"

I turned around. Yes, the paper had caught, the entire structure a sacrificial alter in the sky. However, there was no screaming.

_No_ screaming.

"No?"

I couldn't comprehend. Why was there no screaming? The children are inside. Those snarling little brats…and nothing came of it.

_No_ screaming.

So I did what any batshit insane chick would do in my situation.

I threw back my head and did a little screaming of my own.

000

There wasn't a soul in the castle. I didn't understand it.

I knew the kids could fight, and they had formed bonds with one another (the Academy had yet to invoke the lesson of independence). So I knew I could provide them with shelter and leave in good faith. I was just expecting to fight off some heartless.

Nothing.

The children were so joyful, running up and down the dank halls. Compared to the strict cleanliness of the Academy, this was an adventure.

I turned to Mirlya, one of the older students. She was about thirteen, with bright orange eyes and a chipper attitude.

"Be careful. This technically isn't my home to give."

"With all due respect, for the last seven years I've done nothing but kicked ass." She replied, "And if your protégé managed to slaughter all the head individuals with only a few months training, think about what we can do."

"I honestly don't want to."

"So…I'm in charge?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Formulate a government or something." I created a door back to Sara.

"Oh!" She tugged my sleeve. "This Sara…she's the one that planned this, right?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Can you thank her for us?" Mirlya tightened her hold. "They were ten days away from sending me to a brothel."

"Oh…ok. I'll be sure to do that."

Yeah right.

"And come back if you need anything. We'll need some time to adjust, but I have a few plans going around in my head."

"Uh…ok."

"A new Academy," she beamed. "The Gatekeeper Academy…sounds nice…"

I left her to her musing, believing her to be an idealistic, naïve child.

Little did I know that in twenty-four hours I'd be dead, and Sara would seek out this place during a journey more difficult than I could ever imagine.

Especially because she would be in it alone.


	29. Oh, So We Weren't Talking About PETA?

Twenty-Nine

I could feel the argument hanging over us. We had to fight about it. And yet…we never touched the subject. We just sorta let it hang over us.

Any moment, I knew it would come out, that we would explode into a real argument. Like the ones we used to have back then…

You know, I didn't realize it, but Janice means a lot to me. It sorta snuck up on me, but I love her. She's my sister. I—I don't know what I'd do without her.

I couldn't wait until it was time to build Earth again…Maybe this was gonna be more fun than I thought!

We were at Twilight Town when Sora found us. I was currently in my costume (I had just finished cleaning it, so I was kinda proud of the way it figuratively sparkled), and we were just walking around silently. It felt nice to enjoy each other's company. Even though we knew that we'd explode on one another within seconds.

Then Sora and that duck (Goofy?) sprinted past.

"Uh…is that who I think it is?" Asked Janice. I shrugged.

"E—excuse me?"

We spun around.

Donald the Dog (hey, it kinda has a ring to it) stood there nervously.

"Hi?" Janice waved. "And you are?"

_Donald._

"Goofy," he smiled. "Gawrsh, you're bad with names, aren't yuh? You're always calling the heartless 'zombies' and you can never remember our names."

"Oh…yeah." She looked at me. "I guess I've always had that problem, huh?"

I shrugged.

"And you're Satoru, right?"

Wait…is he talking to me?

Oh yeah, costume. I bowed politely.

"Sora's been looking for you for a long time. What happened?"

"I…uh…" she looked at me for help.

This was when we realized we could no longer interpret words from one another.

We were both drawing a blank.

"Well…I…can't remember," She finished lamely. I patted her on the shoulder for a good effort.

"Goofy!" Sora slammed right through us, knocking Janice to the ground.

I was helping her up just as Sora realized what he's done.

"SARA!"

Janice grunted as she was yanked into a hug, making a face under his shoulder. My lips tightened as I frantically willed her to hug him back.

When she caught the panic, she did me one better and kissed him on the cheek.

"You're ok!"

"_I'm_ ok? You're the one who got launched out a window!" He held her at arm's length. "First Hook's ship, then the knife, now this? You're full of surprises!"

"Speaking of the knife, do you mind giving it back to Satoru? He loaned it to me when I went off to find you."

He turned to me.

"We meet again. So you've been protecting my sister?"

Uh…nice going Janice, now the attention's on me.

I shrugged.

"Oh, don't be modest!" She nudged me playfully, obviously enjoying my discomfort (she's _such_ a bitch). "Yep, he has! He's my guardian angel!"

And she hugged me.

I hugged her back cheerfully.

"You're both awfully short," Donald remarked.

"Shut up Quakers!" She snapped, "He's sensitive about that!"

"Oh boy," Sora sighed as Janice and Donald got into a glaring contest. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the sheath. "This is yours, right?"

I nodded and reached…

He put it back in his pocket. "You never should've let her out of your sight. Some protector _you_ are."

I huffed, crossing my arms.

Well _excuuuuuuse me_ Princess! I'm the mute defender of your useless sister! I have better things to do that watch over her twenty-four/seven!

Like get drunk.

"Well, we've got things to do." Sora clapped his hands, establishing himself as leader of the pack. He turned back to me, "Thanks again for watching out for Sara…if you could call it that…"

My hands clenched into fists.

"…But I'll take it from here."

"No!" Janice grabbed my arm. "I—I'm not going anywhere without him!"

"Sara, listen to me…"

"Sora, I'm not going if Satoru isn't!"

He groaned, throwing his hands in the air. "I give up! The tool can come along!"

"Hey!" She prepared to give him a lecture, but he had already stormed off.

"Sheesh," I mumbled, "PMS much?"

That made her giggle as we followed him.

000

Janice couldn't milk any information out of Sora (temper tantrum), so we just kept our mouths shut and ears open.

You can imagine our anxiety when we reached the mansion.

I swear, if Riku hurls another fireball at me, I'll beat him with my splinted arm until he cries.

I hadn't noticed immediately, but three kids were lying unconscious before the…open gates…

"What the fuck did they do _now_?" Janice hissed. I shrugged.

"Hey, are you alright?" Sora rushed to the blonde one.

Uh…no Sherlock. They're not moving. That generally means their health is dismal…

"What happened?"

"We came here looking for Kairi."

"Kairi's here?" I whispered, nudging Janice. "Raise an objection, demand information."

"Shh!" Goofy looked over at us. I immediately began rapidly twisting and thumping my hands as though I were communicating through them. Janice took the hint and smacked them. "I told you to be quiet!"

I crossed my arms and pursed my lips when I realized she wasn't going to heed my order.

"…this mansion gets a lot of really strange visitors."

"We thought this glace might be the gateway to some kind of alternate Twilight Town," the girl said.

Our nervousness spiked at the mention of the program. Janice had developed a training mechanism for me, which she centered on Twilight Town. That's how I've managed to stay in shape during our dry spell. What the hell did those clowns do with the computer?

We watched in silent horror as those kids put together evidence that two Twilight Towns exist.

"It all makes sense."

"It…does?"

The collective sigh of relief almost attracted attention. At this point, we were relieved that Sora didn't put the pieces together.

Now to convince them there another possibility…

"I get it!"

"Dammit," I grumbled. Janice bit her lip.

There was a swirl of activity as skeletons appeared. Janice took a few steps back, and I pulled out one of my newly sharpened daggers. I wasted no time in pouncing and smashing the skeleton. I flung myself at another one, ducking beneath its graceful kick and forcing the blade into its exposed seal. I didn't even wait until it had dissolved before launching toward the next one. This one slashed my arm, but I simply stabbed the back of its neck and it was done with.

Before I could get the other one, a familiar face had taken care of it. He met my eyes and grinned, opening his mouth, "Sa…"

"Your Majesty!" Janice cried, distracting him. I relaxed a little, getting really sick of all these close encounters. "You're alive!"

She ran up to him, mumbling something really fast and quietly.

"And this must be the Satoru I've heard so much about?"

I bowed.

"You know the king?" Sora exclaimed. Janice simply huffed and turned away.

"That's none of your business," she quoted his earlier statements.

The king rolled his eyes, but hurried over to Sora. "I got something to tell ya. I found out where Ansem is—"

"Ansem, as in the creep who kidnapped and tried to kill me?"

"Ansem the wise! The _real_ Ansem!"

Janice held up her hands in surrender.

"He snuck into Organization XIII's stronghold!"

"And we've figured out where Kairi is! I'm pretty sure we're right."

"But why'd you all come here?"

"Someone…gave us a clue."

Sounds ominous.

Janice waved, catching my eye. I frowned, and she pointed to the woods behind us. I shrugged and followed her while the others were caught up in their conversation.

She waited until we had crawled back under the wall to talk.

"Look, we need to stock up. I know where the Organization is."

"What organization? PETA?"

She crossed her arms, "I'm talking about a psychotic, murdering organization that basically lives off of fucking with others."

"Yeah, PETA."

She rolled her eyes. "Remember that cloaked figure that tried to kidnap you?"

"Yeah…was that PETA?"

"_No_! For the love of God, it _wasn't_ PETA!"

"Who was it?"

"Organization XIII…a group of nobodies."

"A group of what?"

She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Skeletons."

"Ooooooooooh," I nodded, "Why didn't you say so?"

"Because you're an idiot," She snapped.

"Ok. So what's the big deal with these skeletons?"

"Nobo…never mind. They've found me."

"What?" I looked around for skeletons and cloaked figures.

"No Sara, Kingdom Hearts. They've found Kingdom Hearts."

"Oh no…"

"Yes. They're trying to gain hearts by breaking me open. Right now, I've fused to the skeleton of a planet, referred to as 'The World That Never Was'."

"The World That Never Was?"

"It's…" She sighed. "It's the remains of where Emer used to live."

"Oh."

"So, we need to get in there and fight them off. So start souping up your outfit. We'll need all the weapons we can get. Thank goodness you have your knife back."

"Erm…Sora didn't give it back."

She groaned. "We don't have time for this…go! Break into some weapon shops and grab whatever you can! We _need_ to regain control before something bad happens!"

"Like what?"

"I don't know! Just hurry!"

Little did we know that it wasn't the bad people who would ultimately screw us over, but our allies…


	30. Back to the Beginning

Thirty

"You just have this thing for scaffolding, right?"

Janice huffed, "I don't have a _thing_ for it!"

"Then why does every planet you take over have a shit-ton of scaffolding?"

"I—it's feng shui!"

"Yep," I rolled my eyes, "You totally have a thing."

We were sitting on the outskirts, just underneath the dungeon. The cityscape sprawled beneath us, and I was currently letting my feet dangle over the side as we waited for Sora.

"Are you _sure_ this is the only entrance to the stronghold?"

"As sure as I was a minute ago…when you last asked."

I sighed, kicking my feet a little.

"I…" I sighed. "This is the last time I'm going to see everybody, right?"

"If they end up going to their homes…yeah. This will be the last time."

"And then it's Kingdom Hearts…forever."

"Yep."

Silence settled over us.

"Hey Sara?"

"Yep?"

"How long have you been insane?"

I was about to laugh, but I met the serious look on her face.

When had I lost my sanity? The thought didn't scare me. In fact, I'm pretty sure I always knew I was insane…and not in the funny sense.

"Since…" No. It was before that. Way before… "My uncle died. When my Uncle Mitsuo was locked in the burning mall. That's when I lost my grip on reality."

I grinned ruefully. "Mom knew it. She saw I wasn't all there and tried to get me to become one with society. I never took her seriously. It's funny…she always knew I'd end up killing people. She said that to me. 'I knew all these violent video games were a bad influence on you. Next thing I know, you'll be killing people and engaging in premarital sex'."

"Sounds like she was being sarcastic."

"She wasn't." I shook my head numbly. "She's never sarcastic. After Uncle Mitsuo's death, after my descent into madness…she stopped loving me. I didn't mean as much to her as Sora did. We knew I was just going to end up in an asylum anyway."

"Sara…"

"I guess that's where I'm ending up, right? Kingdom Hearts: Planet-Wide Asylum. Population: 1. That's it." I looked at my hands. "It's ok. I'm used to it. Spending a third of your life listening to everyone talk down to you…it gets to a point where you stop feeling it. Where you stop wanting to be a part of it.

"I had already picked one out." I laced my fingers together in my lap. "An asylum I mean. I was working to afford it. I knew that college was out of the question. There's no job I'll ever end up keeping. Hell, I'm pretty sure my boss was just days away from firing me. I always just seemed…off. Everyone acted on that feeling they'd get about me."

"Riku never did."

"Riku's denser than a rock. Twice as stubborn too. He…I love him. He treated me like I was still a person. It was like Sora. Hell, I'm pretty sure Sora was beginning to give up on me too. Only Riku wanted to push through. And for a while, I didn't want to be locked up. I wanted to get better so he could be right about me." I laughed. "It doesn't matter now, does it?"

"No…" She fell silent. "I—I guess not."

Sora appeared now. We waved, and pretended we couldn't hear him yelling about how worried he was.

"You weren't going to die, were you? All those times you claimed you were about to die, you meant that you would be locked up."

"I knew I would stop living at that moment." I responded. "I'd become the walking dead. Like those zombies." We scooted back as Sora began to create a bridge.

"I'm no better than those zombies…"

000

Janice and I rushed after the king, pretending we didn't see the skeletons appearing.

I was so…strong. I could pick up Janice. Pick up Sora. Pick up Riku. All at the same time. I could run forever. I could fight forever. I was invincible.

"Such is the power of Kingdom Hearts," Janice nudged me as we ran. "Gatekeeper Sara…welcome home."

The king barreled through a door, us tearing after him. He swiped and twirled, destroying everything in our path. I still held my weapon, just in case.

Around a corner, up scaffolding, to a platform…

When we got there, Mickey was helping DiZ up.

"DiZ," I stepped forward, taking off my hood. "Or should I say, Ansem the Wise?"

His only answer was to remove the bandages on his face.

000

"Why didn't you come to me before things got so bad?

Ansem the Wise stood erect and proud, "Xemnas, the Organization's Superior, is the Nobody of Xehanort, my foremost apprentice. The burden was mine to bear."

"Is that all?"

"I won't deny there was more. I was... obsessed with thoughts of revenge. My apprentices stole everything precious to me: my research, and my pride."

I opened my mouth, but Janice put a hand on my shoulder. "This is something you need to hear."

"…I know. Riku's told me a thousand times."

I perked up at the sound of his name.

"Where is he?"

"He must be with his friends by now. Riku was a great help to me. I found him wandering the darkness after you and he lost track of each other."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! A great help to you? You _used_ him for your stupid revenge? An innocent boy?"

"Gosh, we didn't lose each other exactly. Riku left…well, 'coz Xehanort's Heartless was still inside his heart, troubling him. And he sure must've been suffering. But what I don't understand is why he looks like that now, when he's still Riku at heart…"

"Looks like what? What did you do to him?"

"The girl is right, I am to blame. When I met Riku the first time he still had the appearance of a boy. Probably because he had such a strong heart. I asked him to find a young man named Roxas from Organization XIII, and bring him to me. When I told him it would help Sora awaken from his slumber, and Sara to come back, Riku left without a word."

"In other words, you manipulated him using me and my brother!"

"Yes," he stared at the ground. "He fought Roxas. And I can only surmise Riku lost that fight. Riku must have realized then: to fight in the realm of darkness, he would have to immerse himself in that same darkness. And when he did…you saw what became of him. When Riku brought Roxas back to me, he was introducing himself…as Ansem. If that was what it took to awaken his friend, he was ready to live in darkness. Riku was the victim of my revenge."

"Was it worth it?" I snapped. "Did you even feel anything, or was it all about you and your Cthulhu-damned revenge?"

"…Oh, how my heart ached. I could only laugh to hide my shame."

"I guess it musta been after that when I saw Riku again. He said he wanted to help Sora and Sara…but he made me promise—promise that they wouldn't ever find out about what happened to him while he was out in the darkness." The king turned to me, "Sara did find out however, in her own way. That's why it was so important I keep at least half of his promise. It's the least he deserves.

Ansem now turned to look at us. "My friend, the time has come. I must make amends to these young people. I'm afraid it's my fault that this is happening."

"No shit!"

Janice put a hand on my shoulder, "Sara. Calm down. It's almost over. We're almost there."

"Kingdom Hearts…you ought to be angry as well. It's my research that led to this moment. The death of the last Gatekeeper…that was at the hands of Xehanort. My apprentice."

"A—Ava…?"

"I owe her a life. I owe Sara a childhood." He stared me down. "Look at her. She's gone mad. All because of me."

"I was mad before." I assured him, waving it off. Next to me, I could feel the rage radiating off of Janice. For Ava…

"No," he shook his head. "Not before. Not like this. Because of me, you're stranded in the true realm of madness. You've done things…survived horrors that no child should ever face alone. Sara…the person you are now is a mere shell of who you were."

"That's why Sora never recognized you," the king bit his lip. "He's willing to believe that the embodiment is you because she bears your form. Without that, you'd be nothing to him."

"I'm so sorry…" Ansem held out a hand. "I…I never thought…"

"Never thought what?" Janice snapped. "That your fucking vengeance, the search for the damn truth would leave behind a chaos that loomed above the universe? That innocent people might suffer for the sake of whatever the hell you thought you were doing?"

She grabbed my shoulders, thrusting me out in front of them.

"Look at her! _Look_!"

They turned away.

"What's going to happen to Sara? She had three years! THREE YEARS! She could've been a kid. She could've been happy. Now she has nowhere to go. Nobody to see. Her own brother…her own brother hates the person she's forced to pretend to be. The boy she loves attacked her on a daily basis. _This_ is the product of your research!" Her voice caught.

"You have no intention of making it up to her. You plan on dying, don't you? Escaping the responsibilities thrust upon you?"

"Here," Ansem ripped off the belt on his waist, thrusting it toward me. "This is all I can offer you. I pray you'll never need it."

I accepted it jadedly; unsure of what's going on anymore. Sluggishly, I buckled it on.

"Leave," Janice snarled. "Go forth and kill yourself. Just stay the hell away from her. Stay the hell away from _all of them_!"

"Janice," I whispered, but her grip only tightened.

Neither of us noticed Ansem pick up the machine.

The machine that would later murder Janice…

But they left the room, and that's what was important to us at the time.

And I wanted to cry. I fell to my knees, desperately trying to make that prickling in my eyes go away. But it wouldn't. I didn't have any tears to cry.

"The others have joined up," Janice whispered. "But Maleficent's on her way."

I perked up, "What?"

"Come on," she held out her hand. I pulled up my hood and accepted, and we transported to the room they were in…

000

Nobody noticed us. They were all too busy watching Sora and Kairi hug.

"Tell them he's not gay," I murmured to her. "Just as a going away present."

"You know," Janice called. "I was totally lying when I told you he's gay!"

Everybody in the room paused and stared at us.

Suddenly Sora connected the dots. "Whoa…you told her I'm _GAY_?"

Everybody in the room started cracking up, and Janice smiled and stood up straight.

"What kind of sister would I be if I didn't?"

And then Riku (I'm pretty sure that's who he is) created a portal. Sora turned to confront him (idiot).

I smiled as he realized his mistake and cried over Riku. This was the life I could have. This could've been mine.

But, if I didn't say yes, it would be missing these three. And what kind of life would that be?

A lame one.

"It's worth it," I whispered as they linked hands joyfully. "It was meant to be this way anyway."

Janice took my hand and squeezed it. "Everything's going to be ok. I promise. Now go back to being your mordant self. Please, you're depressing me."

"Bitch." We both grinned.

"Why didn't you let me know you were ok?" He leaned forward, "You could've at least stuck around to protect my sister."

At that, Riku snapped up, eye narrowing. I waved sarcastically.

"Satoru."

Janice jumped in between us, "I swear to God, if you light him on fire again, I'll hurt you!"

"You lit him on _fire_?"Sora high-fived Riku. "Well, let's finish it. You're still Riku, no matter what!

He turned around and grinned, "So how 'bout it? Think we can handle one last rumble together?"

And at that moment, Maleficent decided to rear her ugly head.

At the sound of her clapping, I grabbed Janice and thrust her toward Goofy.

She grinned maliciously. "_Very motivating_," Her hollow claps ended. "I'll be taking what's mine now."

Riku stepped back, summoning his Keyblade with a click.

"Oh no…as tempting as that is, I'm here for something more important." She turned to me. "You can imagine how upset I was when I realized Pete had failed."

I flipped her off.

She shook her head. "You'll suffer for that. _Both_ of you will…"

I had already lashed out, combat-kicking her stomach. When she doubled over, I slammed my elbow into her neck. She fell to the floor, unconscious.

And here we are. Allow me to return to the present…

"Wh—what do we do?" Janice asked quietly. She was playing the part of old Sara very well. You know, big watery eyes and wimpy behavior. Thank goodness we thought to dress her in loose, all-covering clothes. They might've noticed the lean body mass. And the fact that she looked like a boy.

That's what I'm playing as. I'm the mysterious cloaked boy with enough knives to take down anything that comes in my way.

Sora and Kairi stared at the injured woman uncertainly. Her name was Maleficent. I don't know what her parents were thinking when she was born. But then again, maybe I didn't want to. The hulking Filipino guy that was supposedly Riku avoided looking at her by staring at the ceiling. Subtle. I glanced back at the limp woman lying on her stomach.

"Gawrsh, We can't leave her here, the heartless are coming!" The talking dog reasoned in a very eloquent fashion, if I do say so myself.

Janice looked at me warningly, sensing the sarcasm. It's not like I was going to voice my thoughts. I was the mysterious protector of Sara-the-Fucking-Useless; they all assumed I was mute.

I knew enough improvised sign language to explain my next action.

I cocked my hand back, exposing the rigged blade, and slammed my wrist into her neck. My blade was met with no resistance, which meant I cleanly severed her spine. She twitched and fell still. I straightened my hand, relishing the slick scrape the blade made as it returned into my bracer. Beautiful.

"What the heck did you do that for?" Janice screeched, playing her part perfectly. She even widened her eyes, leapt back, and covered her mouth. Everyone else just stared from the carcass to me in morbid silence.

I made enough obscure hand gestures to appear like I was actually communicating like that instead of through the psychic link. A quick summary of what I was thinking: wing it.

'Sara' sighed and patted my arm gently and whispered, "I understand your intentions were good, but you can't do things like that. Remember? I thought we talked about this."

More gestures.

"No, that still doesn't make it right."

"Wh—what's he saying?" Sora asked, deftly positioning himself between me and Kairi. Those two should just have sex and get it over with already. This courtship thing is annoying. Riku inched toward Janice at Sora's nod.

"He wanted to make sure she never hurt anyone ever again." Janice lied. We both knew that I was just taking care of an annoying problem. "He thought that would make me safe."

I had to think of broccoli covered in goopy cheese to keep myself from smiling at the idea of such a noble proposal coming from me. Riku caught the twitch at the corner of my mouth and stepped forward. "What's so funny?"

Oh shit. Janice, _think of something_! I made more improvised motions.

She blushed and smacked my hand, "Stop it! You're embarrassing me!"

I smirked and put my hands in my pocket casually. The others just stared at her expectantly.

She waved it off, "Never mind."

They accepted it, much to our relief.

We began to head out (finally), but Sora stopped me. The others kept going at his urging, and we were left alone in the room.

"Listen," his eyes narrowed. "I appreciate you protecting my little sister. But if you make any sort of move on her, I'll kill you."

Without another word, he left the room.

Janice thought the irony was hilarious. I was just thankful.

Not even Sora recognized me.

Which was good, seeing as _I'm_ his little sister.


	31. The Luna Diviner

Thirty-One

Meanwhile, Ansem the Wise's machine fired up, pointing a beam of data-converting energy straight to the heart-shaped moon that housed Kingdom Heart's center of control.

In efforts to code and upload the entire place, Ansem's machine had to first collect the bits of data farthest from the control center as possible.

For example, the walking embodiment of Kingdom Hearts.

I had just caught up with the group, with Riku and Sora tag-team glaring at me. We were beginning to move.

And then Janice was encoded.

She gasped, halting in her tracks. Riku was the first to respond.

"Sara, are you…?" Before he could finish his lame question, she snatched my arm.

"S—system failing." She clutched her stomach, gritting her teeth. "You have…you have to stabilize…use yourself as a conduit. Fuse the power to y—yourself. N…no hope left…I can't…I—I'm sorry."

I grabbed her arms, shaking my head. She…she's fine. She's just being a bitch.

That part of my mind, that piece that invaded my head for so long, began to fade.

"I—" She smiled shakily. "I…guess I'll just see you later…"

I gripped her tighter, but my fingers slipped through her skin, clenching air.

With a wheeze, she fell to her knees.

"This…is what Ava must've felt."

"No," I whispered, my voice husky. I fell to the ground in front of her. "Y—you need to fight. You're gonna be fine! What'll I do without you? I…you can't…"

"Goodbye…" She smiled. "You were always my favorite, ya'know? Emer would've…" she coughed, doubling over.

"She would've liked you…they all would've…"

Her figure began to shimmer.

"No…"

"Go on…you—you'll be ok. You just do your batshit…thing," another gasp. I couldn't see her through my tears. "Let the world follow you…"

"_No_."

"You need to hurry. When I'm gone, the power's gonna be on the fritz," she began to speak faster as light began to overtake her. I could hear a faint beeping, but I was too busy trying to listen. "Fuse it to yourself or it'll be up for grabs…and you know what'll happen then…"

Light filled the room.

"_NO_!"

**For the record. I'm sorry for all the things I've done. It won't make a difference, but just know it's there. And I tried my best. I guess it's up to you now…**

And then even the voice was gone. I was alone, empty. There was nothing left.

I hugged myself, leaning forward and pressing my forehead to the ground.

All the strength that being near Kingdom Hearts gave me began to ebb. I was…hungry.

Damn, when was the last time I ate?

I ignored it. Like I have so many times before. I lay with my knees at my chest, sobbing silently.

"They were dating," Riku whispered scornfully. "I'll bet it's his fault too."

"Riku," I growled. "Use your pea-sized brain for once and quit while you're ahead."

"Satoru the mute, huh?" I pretended I didn't hear his voice crack. "What was that? Some way to get in her pants? Gain the innocent little girl's heart by faking a disability?"

"Why are you so touchy?" I sat up, wiping my eyes. Everyone around me was completely numb to the argument, especially Sora. "It's not like you ever had the balls to make a move. She waited for you, and all you did was hurt her in the end."

"I didn't…"

"That's the funny thing," I laughed. "Because you did. You hurt her every day you remained in contact with her, both emotionally and physically." I began to laugh harder, getting to my feet.

"You're all acting like you're upset, but you know what's funny? That wasn't even Sara!"

That got everyone's attention.

"You guys are so dense…you can't even see past the tip of your nose. All you need is someone to tell you something, and you believe it. You believe it so hard you'll go out of your way to threaten the one you apparently 'love'."

"Satoru, you're not making any sense!" Sora snarled. "What the hell happened to my sister?"

I rolled my eyes, turning around.

"I guess you'll never know, will you?"

Without any sort of resistance, I left the room.

Funny. I guess they never really cared about me in the first place.

Little did I know that they were initially right behind me…before Luxord decided to show up.

000

The room had a bunch of standing keyholes, along with a big arching door. I bypassed those weird hole-things and ran for the cavern.

I hit an invisible barrier, slamming back onto the ground with a whimper.

Man, why didn't I steal some food from Riku? My throat was beginning to feel scratchy.

Damn, now I need water? I totally forgot about all that!

I held my protesting stomach with a groan. Well, I need to get out of here and fuse myself to Kingdom Hearts…however I manage that. Fuuuck…why did you have to do this to me?

"Jaaaaaaniiiiiiiiice…" I whined. "Coooooome baaaaaaaaack!"

No answer. Great. Fucking awesome. I was totally expecting that to work too.

Alright, maybe there're keys to this barrier in these keyholes. Maybe…I go through them?

Ok…I came from the one that said "The Gambler of Fate" (weird name for a room), so now I need to head over to the only other one that isn't broken…"The Luna Diviner".

Huh, I wonder if it's some kind of observatory…I like stars, so this should be fun!


	32. Warm Fuzzies, I'm So Not Ok With This

Thirty-Two

Well, I feel stupid. All of you at home must be laughing your asses off. See, here's what happened:

I walked into the room, marveling at the wrought-iron fence looming above me. I was too short to see past it, so I jogged excitedly to the edge.

I wasn't disappointed. A large piece of the wall was pure glass, showing off the heart-shaped moon with…a green line? What's with the green line? I ignored the speckles of glittering stars and tried to solve this mystery.

I like stars.

Before I knew it, I was on the ground in the middle of the room, my head pulsating with a strange leaking sensation. I whimpered and put my hand to the back of my head, hoping to stem the feeling.

Liquid oozed between my fingers. Through the hood. This was bad.

Ow.

"And the Gatekeeper gifts us with her presence…"

"Sheesh, and my own brother can't figure out my gender…who knew?" I sighed. "This is total bullshit."

To my surprise, he didn't kill me. Instead, he produced a piece of rope and secured my good arm to the fence. My bad one was still lashed to my chest.

Hot damn, if this isn't troublesome, I don't know what is.

He didn't say anything (well, nothing that was loud enough for me to hear over the blood rushing in my ears), so I didn't mention anything either. Maybe if I pretend to die, he won't kill me.

My stomach gnawed at its lining.

Or maybe I'll just die right now. That's pretty likely considering how my luck has been lately.

"Satoru!" I heard a familiar (and now annoying) voice scream.

Cthulhu dammit Sora, hit puberty already!

"Sheesh," I mumbled, "I can't even ditch you guys for three minutes? This sucks."

"Satoru?" That man with blue hair drawled monotonously. "Is that who you claim to be?"

"Hang on, I'm a little busy _dying_ to answer that," I growled. "By Cthulhu, I swear that when I get out of here…"

"_SARA_?"

That man cut off whatever half-assed reply I could think of with a laugh. "And now you see. The mysterious cloaked figure that you all loathe is actually your beloved Sara Cho."

"The same beloved who's going to kick _your ass_!" I snarled at that man. "Go to hell!"

"Feisty…just the way a Gatekeeper was meant to be."

"Gatekeeper?" Riku took the bait. I met his eyes.

He was pale, giving me sidelong glances and wincing slightly.

Ten munny says he's thinking of all those elbow-hits. Any takers?

Oh wait, I'm alone now.

I felt the sarcastic feeling ebb as I thought of Janice…

"Oh, you don't know?"

At that, I groaned and pressed my forehead against the cool tile. "Here we go again…"

"When Kingdom Hearts was first created…and I believe you know the story of the children who used their heart's purity to restore their homes…a single child was selected to protect it from anyone who means it harm. She was also given another task…one so secret that only the Gatekeeper knows." He looked at me pointedly. I flipped him off.

"Each Gatekeeper is destined to live a life of solitude, to seal themselves away in Kingdom Hearts. In order to provide some measure of comfort, the realm created a physical embodiment of itself, taking on the form of the current Gatekeeper."

"For those of you not following, that was the 'Sara' that died ten minutes ago." I mumbled.

"And so, the reason we can't get a heart is currently tied to this fence."

"Sucks to be you," I replied. "Now shut up, I have a killer headache."

Kairi gasped at something, and I looked up.

His giant club…sword…spike…thingie (what the hell is that?) hovered above me.

Ten money says he's planning on slamming that into my neck. Any takers?

Oh yeah.

The depression set in again. I slowly lay back down.

"Go ahead," I whispered. "I honestly don't care anymore."

He smirked, "As you wish."

His muscles flexed, and I let my eyes slide shut…

A loud crash thundered through the room. Something tugged on my arm, and the restraints were gone.

"I lit you on fire once," Riku snarled. "I'll fucking do it again!"

I kept my eyes closed, even when the air crackled with heat and electricity. Suddenly I was jerked off the ground and…cradled?

It's been such a long time since…since somebody's actually _held_ me. Not strangled, not squeezed, but _held_.

A strange, unfamiliar sensation built in my stomach, and my eyes fluttered open.

Through the teeny holes in the cloth of my hood, I could make out Riku's face, coldly determined. His weapon was out, and I was nestled in one arm.

"Saïx!" Sora appeared at Riku's side. "You're _dead_!"

One by one, the others rushed forward to stand beside Riku…to support their friend.

Of course…nobody would ever want to defend me. I'm just a burden…I just deserve to die.

Slowly, I twisted out of Riku's grasp. I took one step forward…breaking the line…

Kairi and Sora grasped my shoulders, yanking me back. Riku picked me up again, this time his grip was firmer, and he abandoned his weapon to hold onto me.

Yep, this was familiar.

"Let me go!"

"Shh," Kairi's cool hands peeled the hood off of my forehead. "Leave it to us Sara."

The…the light. I haven't seen light this bright in…Cthulhu only knows…

I whimpered and pulled it back up. It's safer. I felt myself relax as the fabric coated my face.

"Just leave it for now," Riku murmured to Kairi as she tried to pull it off again. In the background, Sora screamed obscenities at this "Saïx".

"So…this is love."

Riku's grip got tighter and he looked down at me for an instant.

"Yes." He whispered. "This is love."

That warmth blossomed in my chest, and I hid my face in his shoulder.

Then Sora killed the moment.

"Riku, touch my sister and I'll fucking kill you."

Ok. Warmth gone.

"Can we argue about this later?"

"I believe I said this before, but if I had a heart, this would be the part where I died of laughter."

And a sudden gust of wind slammed into us. I moaned (unintentionally), and Riku spun to protect Kairi.

"Help me stem the bleeding," He thundered over the roaring air.

I could feel us sliding back, but that didn't bug me as much as Kairi touching the back of my head did. I shoved her hand away, "No."

The wind abruptly stopped. They didn't even look at the barrier that formed behind them, separating us from Sora, Donald, and Goofy.

"No!" I leapt to my feet. "Sora!"

Riku forced me back down, holding my arm. I lashed out with my feet, and he kneeled on my calves.

"Hold onto her, I have a first aid kit somewhere in here."

Kairi's grip held fast (no matter how hard I struggled) as Riku pulled something out of a pack located under his cloak.

Kairi wasted no time in opening the white metal box. Being "financially secure", their parents forced them to take all sorts of weird classes, first aid being one of them.

Riku took my hand and wrapped his other arm around my back, pulling me forward. Kairi peeled my hood back.

"_No_!"

I was too weak. Riku had no difficulty keeping me in place. He even managed to keep my head in place too, using his chin.

That's ingenuity, right there.

It hurt. But I refused to cry. I refused to scream. I refused to acknowledge any lack of strength.

A single stream of moisture slipped out of the corner of my eye.

_Crying is a sign of weakness._

"Is Sora looking?" Riku asked quietly.

Kairi chuckled. "Go ahead Casanova, I won't tell."

He rolled his eyes.

And then he kissed the tear away.

Yup. He's thinking about those elbow slams.

Kairi finished with the wrap, "Ok. It'll look weird, but it'll hold until we can get you to a medical center."

My stomach growled, and I flinched, pulling my hood back up.

"Here," Riku suddenly had a saltine, pressing it to my lips.

"I'm fine," I mumbled, keeping my mouth closed.

"_Sara_."

I took the cracker, nibbling on the edge moodily. I was hungry, but I wasn't in the mood to eat.

"I'm serious, you better eat that or we'll turn back and take you to a medical center immediately," Kairi snapped.

I popped it into my mouth meekly, trying not to gag.

When I finally managed to choke it down, Riku had another one. Kairi threatened me again, and the cycle continued for another six crackers. Then I refused to respond.

To compensate, Kairi forced me to finish her water bottle.

_Full_ water bottle.

By then Sora was finished, but I was too sick to move.

He didn't even wait to hear Saïx's dying rant. He merely rushed over to me, kneeling in front of me and trying to peek under the hood.

"How is she?"

"She is very nauseous," I grumbled.

"We bandaged her head and managed to get her to eat and drink a little." Riku replied, "I can carry her and…"

"_I'll_ carry her," Sora crossed his arms and glared. "You just keep protecting us."

That initiated a chest-pounding glare-fest, so I smacked my good hand against the ground to save us a good ten minutes. "Fuck this, I'm walking."

"No!" That got their attention. I smacked away their hands and got to my feet shakily. I needed balance, but I refused to use anything to support myself.

"A—are you ok?"

Well, the room is spinning, my stomach's pissed at me, my head is leaking, my only companion for the rest of my life is dead, my arm is broken, and I have this weird warm feeling in my chest.

"Yeah, I'm good."

And then everything went black.


	33. Not The End, I Assure You

_Artificially Flavored, your comments are highly appreciated and help me know when to clarify something. I thank you from the bottom of the lump of coal I call my heart._

Thirty-Three

I woke up with that dog on top of me. Goofy? I think that's his name.

My stomach was churning less, so I wriggled out from under him and got to my feet.

I fell on my ass.

Ok, maybe I should take it slow. I eased myself off the floor.

Much better.

Thank goodness I didn't have heels on, that would make this a lot worse.

I surveyed the scene. I have no idea how long I've been out. Stuff could've happened, like…uhm…maybe Riku is back to normal?

Oh my Cthulhu…Riku is back to normal.

_I totally saw that coming. You owe me ten munny…Janice…who died…and now I'm alone…_

I clenched my jaw and fists (well, fist _singular_, remember the lack of movement ability in my right hand? Yeah, that didn't go away). I'm not going to dwell on that. I have something more important to do.

First things first, I kissed my brother's cheek, ruffling his hair. "Take care of her, ok? I know you'll make her happy."

My hormones clenched as I tried to walk past Riku.

"_You have…you have to stabilize…use yourself as a conduit. Fuse the power to y—yourself."_

"_Yes." He whispered. "This is love."_

For the love of…ok. Fine. It's not like I'll see him again anyway.

I knelt beside Riku, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. For some reason, a ribbon covered his eyes.

Does the light hurt him as much as it hurts me?

Every muscle in my body screamed to get closer. Finally, I worked up the courage.

His skin was cold under my lips. It was a little brush, nothing more.

"Yes." I whispered. "This is love."

I got back to my feet, leaving the room, brushing the single tear from my eye.

"_Crying is a sign of weakness."_

"Then I guess I'm a weak person." I mumbled to nobody.

Little did I know, my brother was watching the whole time, his fists clenching slowly as his gaze rested upon his unconscious best friend…

000

There was a long winding pathway, which I covered within moments. Those saltines must've been magic! I haven't felt this way in a while…

Oh yeah, magic doesn't work on me.

Uh…those saltines must've been…erm…science! Yeah, that's it!

I ascended the stairs, and made it to a platform.

That green light…maybe that's what killed Janice. It was pointed at the moon, which now…has a gaping hole in it.

_Ten munny says…oh yeah…_

The depression weighed on my limbs. However, I didn't have the time for that. I needed to…fly…

Well, good luck with the happy thoughts.

Footsteps rang out, and I darted to the edge, curling under a statue.

Ansem…or Riku…or whatever that guy was (the one with short white hair and tan skin) walked calmly to the edge of the platform. And he held his arms in the air. And he waited.

Uhm…ok…that's honestly not one of the weirdest things I've ever seen…but still, it's unusual.

We stayed like that for ten minutes. He stood in that position without faltering, and I forced myself not to crack my spine.

I wasn't sure who this guy was, but everything inside of my muddled brain was screaming for me to rip his spine out.

Can I even do that? That would be cool.

After ten minutes, when I was three seconds away from pulling a highly controversial Mortal Kombat _FINISH HIM_ maneuver, my brother and his band of kooky followers showed up.

"Ohh…my Kingdom Hearts…ruined. Now I'll have to start all over again." He put his hands down.

"Warriors of the Keyblade!" He turned around, "Go forth, and bring me more hearts!"

Whoa, so _this_ is what we were waiting for? This is officially the most pathetic thing I'll ever bear witness to.

"NO!" Three Keyblades magically appeared in the hands of Sora, Riku, and that mouse king.

I felt a sudden pull towards the blade in Riku's hand. I inched a little to the side to get a closer look.

"Denizens of light, answer this: Why do you hate the darkness?"

"Aw, we don't hate it." The king drawled. "It's just kinda…scary."

Did he really just say that?

You know, I've noticed something. All the bad guys I've faced have had these amazing speeches that are rather thought-provoking, yet all the good people spend their time and money just decimating the poetic nature of it all.

I totally want to be a bad guy.

"But the world's made of light AND darkness. You can't have one without the other, 'coz darkness is half of everything. Sorta makes you wonder why we are scared of the dark."

Huh…I give that a three on the poetic scale.

"It's because of who's lurking inside it."

Oh please Riku, not you too. You're better than this.

Although, that was kinda witty.

No! My hormones are taking sides! Must…remain…sarcastic…

"Then allow me another question."

We all stared at whatever-the-fuck expectantly.

"You accept darkness, yet choose to live in the light. So why is it you loathe those of us who teeter on the edge of nothing?"

Because you're a dickwad.

"We who were turned away by both light and dark—never given a choice?"

"That's simple."

Please be sarcastic Riku, that's your only redeeming quality at this point. Well, that and your muscular thighs…STOP IT SARA!

"It's because you mess up our worlds."

I sense no sarcasm. You and your thighs have failed me.

"That may be…however, what other choice might we have had?"

Uhm…one where you're not a total dickwad? I slipped out of my hidey hole.

"Just give it a rest!" I snarled the thought as Sora did.

Riku turned and gave me a half-smile that made my face heat up.

"You and your twin telepathy."

I stood next to my brother, in between Riku and him.

"You're nobodies! You don't even exist!" He clenched his fist, "You're not sad about anything!"

The dickwad laughed (Dickwad McDickwadface is too much of a mouthful), "Very good. You don't miss a thing. I can not feel—sorrow…no matter what misery befalls the worlds. No matter what you think, what you feel…"

As the king and Riku got into fighting positions, I cleared my throat.

"Yeah, yeah, you're the evil guy. We get it. Now, can you move out of the way so I can get a vital part of my life's mission out of the way? Or do I have to kill you?" I tapped my chin. "I'm actually totally game for the second option. So how 'bout it? Wanna get your spine ripped out?"

"Because _that's_ not creepy," Riku mumbled.

"You're next if you keep that up."

"Ah…the Gatekeeper graces us with her benevolent presence…"

I snorted, holding up a finger and covering my mouth as I laughed. "Ok, ok, ok, really? Benevolent? _Really_?"

"I assume you're after the power of hearts?"

"Eh," I shrugged, "That's one way to put it."

"Then it is you who stands in the way of me and my heart."

He threw his hands in the air, and light and sound began to swirl around me.

"Prepare to die."

"NO!" Sora grabbed my arm and yanked (making Riku's hand miss, which will be the cause of many future arguments between them), just as the light began to blind me…

We were suddenly downtown, that freakazoid leering at us.

Sora wasted no time in attacking. His blade clashed with what's-his-face's laser sword (Star Wars lawsuit, here we come…).

"Don't!"

Clang!

"Touch!"

Clang!

"My!"

Clang!

"Sister!"

At that, he forced the evil dude back. I snapped out of my stupor and pulled out my sai.

"Say goodbye to your spine!"

This actually became my catchphrase. I never did rip out anyone's spine, but it was fun to say. Especially when I saw Riku's face while we were sparring. But I digress, back to the present…

I lunged.

Never in a million years did I expect this to happen:

The man shoved Sora to the side…spun…

…and lodged his blade right in the middle of my chest.

The laser short-circuited, sputtering out, and I flopped to the ground.

I honestly wish I could say the last thing I heard was the voice of those I love. Unfortunately, that's not how my story ends.

All I could hear was the patter of rain on the cobblestone street, reminding me of my failure…


	34. Two Hours, Followed By Lung Collapse

Thirty-Four

**FUCK! What the hell are you doing? You can't die yet!**

My eyes fluttered open. All I could see was white light and a shimmering figure…almost angelic…

And certainly nothing like the person it resembled.

**I resent that.**

"Janice?"

**The one and only. You were expecting otherwise?**

"Kinda, seeing as you _died_."

**Eh, I'm still dead. Mostly. See, that encoding thingie blew to hell. I've got a little bit of life still in me.**

"Speaking of life, why do I still have one?"

**Oh yeah, answer me this Sherlock: how can a person survive a knife to the chest?**

"They don't."

**Well, well, well, aren't **_**you**_** Little Miss Optimism today! Come on, the rules of nature don't apply to you, think!**

"Uh…" I trailed off. "Bone? Did it hit bone?"

**DING DING DING! Give her a prize!**

"Uh…getting my bone stabbed is generally a bad thing."

**Well, it's your sternum actually. You have about two hours to fuse the leftover power to yourself before your lungs collapse. Hurry! That's really your only option…**

"What?" I opened my eyes.

"Oh thank GOD!" Sora grasped my hand, "Sara, can you hear me? Can you talk?"

_You have about two hours…before your lungs collapse._

I shoved him off, getting to my feet.

"No!" Riku wrapped his arms around me, "Lie down! Try not to move…"

I pried his hands off me and shoved him away. I took another step…

…just in time to watch that creepy guy who stabbed me absorb all the power. Light filled the room, its sheen somehow drowning out my desolate wail.

I fell to my knees.

"No…no, no, nononononoNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Sara?"

"NOOOOOO!" I slammed my hand on the ground. "Fucking fuck! No! I fucking…seriously, what the fuck…FUCK!"

"We can't let him get away!" The king suddenly cried, I looked up, shoving the terrific trio off me.

"No _shit_ Sherlock. He just stole my life. I have two hours to get it back, and you can _bet_ I'm gonna rip out his spine!"

"Sara, maybe you should leave this one to…"

"Riku, finish that sentence. Let's just see what happens."

That shut him up.

I got to my feet. "Dickwad's probably fucking up the realm as it is." With a sigh, I held out my hand.

The fight to summon a door was more intense than usual. I had to consciously pull on that magic, shoving it into existence.

Covering the hole in my chest with my right hand (still bound to my chest), I pushed onward, ignoring the annoying cries of my brother, future husband (who will become completely whipped by the time we've tied the knot), and future sister-in-law (who will also coincidentally wear the pants in her marital relationship).

And because this was my fight, I shut the door behind me.

-0-0-0-

Weak, I know. But an epic fight's coming up. I need preparation. Meaning sugar. I don't have nearly enough sugar (who _cares_ if my meds make me hungry and I'm only supposed to eat vegetables, I _need_ a twinkie!)

Anyhoo…we're getting there. Can't you feel it? Ah…review or something. I'd like to know what you all think. And tips. Tips are needed.

And thanks for reading this far. I see like, a hundred people read the first chapter, and then it slowly peters down to like, thirty. It hurts a little.


	35. Intruder Alert!

Thirty-Five

"The worlds gave us this doorway. They want us to be the guardians of their destiny!"

Riku stared up at the door, finally speaking. "Once we go through, there's no turning back. It's victory…or oblivion…"

I stared up at the door.

"So, are you ready Sora?"

I shook my head. "No."

"Sora…" Kairi put a hand on my shoulder. My fists clenched.

"But if my baby sister can push ahead like that, I sure as hell can." I turned to Riku, "If your self-encouragement speech involves Sara in any way, I'll kill you."

He held up his hands, "Relax! An hour ago, you were all for me protecting her."

"Because you looked like a forty-year-old man. Now you're attractive. I'm not ok with that."

Riku bit his lip, "I think there's a compliment in there somewhere…never mind. Let's go save Sara."

"Gonna kill you."

"Gonna kill you right back."

The king joined us, and we summoned our blades. Maybe Sara can lock the door with no trouble, but she doesn't know something very vital.

For every lock, there is a key.

And for every key, there is a person.

And for every person, is love.

And I love my little sister. Just seeing her crumple made my life swirl into nothingness. Without her…I don't know what I'd do, what I'd be…

There's no way she's doing this alone. Or at all (as far as I'm concerned).

A single beam of light…of love shot out of our Keyblades, and the loud 'THUNK' of moving gears sounded our success.

"Get ready Sara," I whispered as the doors slid open. "It all ends here!"

Me, Riku, and Kairi pushed ahead of the rest of them, passing through the filmy doorway. It was cool and refreshing, like that of a waterfall. I sighed with newfound serenity when we reached the other side.

The king, on the other hand, took one look at the towering cities and flipped.

"We need to leave."

"But Your Majesty, my sister…"

"Listen Sora," He grabbed my hands, staring me in the eyes. "She made me promise. Janice said…we need to stay away from Sara. When she sees," he thrust out his hand, "_this_…I don't know. I honestly don't know what she'll do."

"Mickey," Riku stepped forward, "You're not making any sense! This is _Sara_ we're talking about. Sure, she's a little off. But that's because of her anxiety. She's been forced to rely on herself, which probably scared the daylights out of her. But it'll be ok! She's going to be fine now that we're here!" He thrust out his chest arrogantly, "We'll protect her now!"

"No. No Riku, it's not going to be ok. Not for her. You see…well, have any of you actually looked her in the eyes?"

"Of course…" No. I haven't. She's always wearing that hood… "No. I haven't actually."

"Nope, I never got the chance," Kairi chimed in.

"Me neither," Riku mumbled, "I don't see where this is going."

"Riku, Sora, Kairi…Sara's gone insane."

000

Intruders. They did this to me. To us. To our home. I twirled around, taking in the abomination that was _Kingdom Hearts_. Intruders. They don't belong here. Nobody belongs here. This is ours.

This is _mine_.

Voices echoing. That wasn't my voice.

**Intruders.**

"Intruders," I whispered, hunching down. They did this. The intruders did this to my island. My _home_…

"_Stop lying!"_

"_Shhhh! She'll hear us!"_

"_Stop acting like that! You're…you're stupid!"_

"_Listen to me!"_

"_No! Shut up! You don't know what you're talking about!"_

"_Riku…Sora…Kairi…calm down! You don't understand, Sara…Sara will…"_

I took out a throwing knife, aiming for the tallest one. With a flick of my fingers.

With a cry, he fell to the floor, clutching his shoulder.

Hmm…that wasn't where I was aiming. I must get better.

"INTRUDERS!" I shrieked. They stared up at me. The wind blew my hood off of my sweaty face. "_INTRUDERS_!"

"Sara! Come down! It's us!"

Sara? Who's this Sara? Another intruder? I'll kill her too.

"RUN!" The smallest one grabbed people, shoving them through the exit. I shook my head.

"No, no, no, no, NO!" I waved my arms. The door slammed shut. The four remaining looked about wildly.

"It seems your hearts have led you to obliteration…"

I snapped up at the sound. My sight zoomed in on another figure. Miles away.

Back to the new intruders. Well, they're going nowhere.

I leapt off the building, onto another one. Before gravity could kick in, I pushed off.

That intruder threw a building at me. The nerve. I merely dodged and continued in my pursuit. The man was closer…closer…and on _my_ guardian. The NERVE.

It took a single swipe to end him.

A lock of brown hair slid over my eyes, blocking the view. But I heard. Oh, did I hear.

He was gagging. Choking. Drowning in his own blood. Feeling for the first time in his life.

Feeling _fear_. Nothing like a healthy dose of fear to make you appreciate life.

"More than you deserve," I hissed. Without another word, I kicked him off the guardian. This was mine. All of it was.

He fluttered into the abyss, the smoke swirling as his body disappeared.

I turned my sights on the four remaining. Slowly, I lifted my hand, curling my fingers to point.

"You're next."

-0-0-0-

Oh, did I make you think that Xemnas was the last boss? Sorry. It's actually Sara. Hey, what'd you expect, she's batshit insane!

Allow me to clarify a little bit. Sara finally snapped when her sanctuary, the Kingdom Hearts formed like the islands, was distorted. That was the last tie to her sanity, knowing that when it's all over, she can return to her island. To her home. So when she realized that it was the outsiders' fault, she associated her pain with anyone that wasn't her.

To her, there are no friends. Only intruders.

Oh, and to those complaining about short chapters, I'm sorry. That's the only way I can update so quickly.

But, to provide satisfaction, the next one _will_ (in fact) be longer.


	36. Of Rusty Knifes and Glowy Things

_You can all thank **niculascrimsoninsanity** for the kinda speedy-ish upload. Hint, hint, if you want an update that bad, just tell me. I'll hurry if I find out people are riding on it._

_Anyhoo, enjoy. Love you all for actually reading this far._

Thirty-Six

Sara did something. When Xemnas died, she began to glow. She began to chant something about power, and then she glowed. Her entire body was engulfed in light.

Riku groaned, pulling me out of the memory. I shushed him. "Hang on!"

"It…oh God…I—I can't believe…"

I yanked the steel out of his shoulder. His scream broke the silence.

"Shut him up!" I ordered Goofy as I fumbled for a potion. We just barely managed to hide in time (while Sara was distracted), and now she was patrolling the city in search for us. The only way out was through that dragon, and we have to make it.

Goofy closed a gloved hand over my best friend's mouth. Tears streamed down his face as he began to thrash. Before I opened my mouth to bark another command, Donald moved to hold him still.

I picked the shredded fabric out of the wound.

I think the smothered howl was much scarier than the vocal one. Riku shook his head wildly, drool dripping off his chin, but I had no choice.

I couldn't heal him until the gash was clean.

"MMMMRRRRRRRRRPH!"

I poured more water over it and brushed out the dirt.

"!" His pupils began to contract…

"I'm almost done," I rubbed his arm gently. "Just one more clump of rust…"

I used my fingernails to pluck it out as gently as I could manage.

"!"

And then his aqua eyes rolled upward and he relaxed.

I rubbed the potion into the trench in his skin, "We need to move. Can you carry him?"

Goofy nodded, standing up and slinging the unconscious Riku over his shoulder.

"Gawrsh, what if Sara finds us?"

"We…we fight." I looked at my feet. "We'll…oh God…"

"_Found you_."

And my eyes slowly drifted up to meet that of one of the people I love the most.

Sara bared her teeth, wiggling her fingers around the knives she held. "Say goodbye to your spine."

That was the first time I've ever punched a girl.

000

My hand still throbbed from where I hit…I hit my…my sis…_Sara_…

I rubbed my knuckles again, trying to get the feeling away.

"Stop it Sora," Riku grabbed my hand and held it firmly. It didn't feel romantic or anything, just…desperate.

The skin was red and raw.

"What's the plan?"

"Well, the easiest way is to go straight down the middle. But there's no doubt she'll find us. We can wander these back alleyways for as long as we want, but let's face it, we have no idea where we are."

I sighed at Riku's logic. "So we push onward?"

"Yep, straight up the front." He paused, "I can't believe I'm about to say this, but if she catches up to us, leave her to me. I know how she fights."

"Oh…" I sighed again. "Ok."

"Sora," He threw an arm around me, pulling me into a half-hug. "It's gonna be ok. She's coming home with us, and she'll be back to normal."

Turns out, that statement was half true.

000

My nose ached. Just another reminder of what those…those _traitors_ did to me. Traitors…they must die.

_The smell of bitter pine sap and the tickle of ants on my legs… Nobody here but me and the insects. And the insects don't remind you that you're a pale little marshmallow with a badger face._

_I looked up just in time to see fingers of red grasping at the black silk sky, trying to grab that last bit of life, hoping to pull itself back up before it dissolved into nothing._

_The storm raged all around us, swirling over the islet. I stared up at the sky, looking through the middle of a ring of wind and rain. The sky was a deep purple, so thick that the lightning appeared to be lavender._

"_Riku Takahashi, he's responsible for quite a bit of trouble. He'll destroy your home, hurt your friends, and ultimately lose his own soul."_

"_Sometimes, I wish you'd just shut up."_

"_God, you're so weird."_

Intruders.

I caught a sudden glimpse of something…running. They're running.

Those four…they tore down the main street like they had no shame.

No shame _for what they did_.

And angry shriek burst from my mouth, and I launched through the air. They would die for what they did to us. They would _die_.

_You're gonna die little girl, you're gonna DIE!_

I flew through the air, closer, closer, and closer still. Power pushed me up. I could use both hands. And trust me, they would rue the day they decided to cross me.

And then, just when I was so close I could taste the blood pounding in their systems, I was yanked back by my ankles.

I sprawled on the asphalt, rolling and tumbling, the rough material grinding my skin.

Standing above me was the tall one. I snarled, getting to my feet.

"Sara?" He whispered. "What happened to you?"

Who the hell is this "Sara"?

"I am Kingdom Hearts," I announced. "This is my realm. You don't belong here. You don't belong in _my home_!"

"SARA!" He interrupted me, pointing a wicked blade at my neck. "KNOCK IT OFF!"

"What?"

Without another word, he cocked his fist back and sent me sprawling to the floor. Incredulously, I brought my hand to the trickle of blood sliding out of my nose. My fingers soaked up the fluid, shining in the moonlight. I pulled it back and stared.

"You're not the girl I love," the boy hissed, stepping over me and breaking into a run.

For some reason, I couldn't move. Slowly, my legs moved up to my chest, and I encircled them in my arms, my hand still in front of me, eyes still glued to that smear of scarlet.

It's cold. I want to know why it's cold.

000

Whatever Riku did was effective. Sara didn't even make a sound after he interceded. There was an opening about seven feet off the ground, an entrance to the dragon. It was some sort of craft, I could see that now. But as interesting as that was, I had no time to admire it. I leapt, grabbing the edge and pushing myself up. I held out my hands, heaving Donald, Goofy, and Riku up one-by-one.

Riku ducked away, but I noticed a glisten on his face.

"Are—are you crying?"

"Shut up."

I was about to press it when I heard a throat clear.

"Hello?"

I spun around.

A girl stood here with her hands clasped behind her back. Her sapphire eyes shone with sarcasm and desperation, and loose brown curls dusted her shoulders.

'Sara' waved with a forced smile.

Riku had his weapon drawn and pointed to her neck within moments. "No more of this. I swear to God, I'll kill you if you don't stop with the mind games." His voice cracked, "I—I can't take any more of this…I…I can't…"

"Riku, calm down." She held out her hands, "My name," the girl looked at her feet. "Well, it's not Sara. But you already know that, I can tell. You may call me Janice. I'm actually Kingdom Hearts, but one of the Gatekeepers named me Janice, for the two-faced god." She shuffled her feet. "But I digress."

"What are you doing here?" Riku asked bluntly, keeping his blade drawn (though he lowered it to his side). "Didn't you die?"

"Well, I was encoded. I can't do much, mostly just walk and talk. I could never fight as it is, but now I'm even more useless."

"What happened to Sara?"

Janice slumped at the mention of my sister.

"I did. This is all my fault." She shook her head, wiping her face. "I can blame anyone, say anything, but nobody hit her harder than I did. Nobody tore at her self-esteem more than I did. I…I drove her to insanity. I can never take it back."

"You did _what_?"

"I—I had to!" Janice ran her fingers through her hair nervously, "I needed another Gatekeeper. And Sara…she was so gentle. She didn't want to hurt anyone. I had to make her snap. She needed hate, she needed to kill. And I did just that. I taught her how to hate and how to kill. And she's served her purpose."

"That's it? _She served her purpose_?"

"You misunderstand. I love her. I didn't want this. I—she's gone mad. I've always tried to dodge out of it, but I couldn't. I knew this would happen." She tossed me something.

I caught it easily, uncurling my fingers…

In my palm rested a strangely familiar sapphire pendant, shaped like a teardrop. A slim strip of leather looped through a drilled hole, tied at the back.

"A necklace?"

"_Her_ necklace. I took it when she was unconscious on that first day. Her uncle gave it to her. But…she couldn't have comfort. However," she pointed. "That has his love. He made it with love, and love is the only thing that will save her now." She pointed to me, "A brother's love." She pointed to Riku, "A lover's love." She pointed to the pendant, "A father's love. She has nothing. You're her everything. Remind her of who you are—who _she _is. Do this, and you will win. She'll come home with you. You'll live happily forever."

Her figure began to flicker.

A wistful grin spread across her face. "I'm far too weak. Kingdom Hearts…I guess it'll never serve its purpose in the end." Another flicker, she stared at her hand blankly.

"I'm strangely ok with that."

She looked back at us. "Save her Sora, Riku. You're our only hope."

And without a sound, she faded from existence. Never to be seen or heard by us again. In her place, there was only a door.

Without hesitation, Riku and I each grabbed a handle and yanked. A crack of light appeared, growing and growing until it engulfed us in its warmth…

000

"Thank GOD!" The king hurried over to us. "Are you harmed? Riku, how's your shoulder? Donald, Goofy, Sora, are you in need of medical attention? We need to get out of here!"

"We're fine," I whispered as Kairi pulled me into a hug. I hid my face in her hair and sighed as she rubbed my nape. Slowly, my eyes shut.

"Hurry up and leave," Riku growled. "She'll probably be back."

"Riku," I let go of Kairi, turning to him. "You're coming back with us, right?"

"I had given in to the darkness."

"Riku!"

"How'm I gonna face everyone?" He wheeled on me, eyes shining with tears.

"Like this!" I smashed my palms into my cheek.

That earned me a burst of laughter. We smiled at each other, and he wiped his eyes. Things were back to normal.

I looked back at the closed door.

Well, almost normal.

I held the necklace tighter. We'll save her. I know it.

Just not now.

Still, she's my sister, and though I may not be ok with it, that doesn't mean I'll just let her die.

A tremor rattled through the platform, knocking us all to the ground.

The king got to his feet first, "Hurry!"

Riku nodded, "I'll open a path." He held out his hand.

Nothing happened.

Well, that was anticlimactic.

Panic spread across his face, he began mumbling to himself nervously. Finally, he put his arm down, staring at it bitterly.

"You don't belong in the dark realm anymore, Riku." The king patted his arm.

Donald interrupted my consistent moping, "How do we get out of here, Your Majesty?"

While the king pondered over that, I saw a glimmer of movement out of the corner of my eye. I spun…

A girl in white.

…_she stood above me, a hesitant smile on her face…_

_..."You were never meant to exist Roxas"…_

…_We'll meet again someday. I know it…_

Without a word, she held out a hand. Immediately, a portal of darkness sprang from the ground, vibrating with intense strength.

The king and Donald ran…through her? Her figure flickered out like a light bulb.

Was she even there in the first place? Well, the portal proves it…right?

"Who did this?"

"Welp, I'm not sure. But we better hurry and get through.

Pluto flipped, barking and running around the two before diving headlong into darkness.

"Wait for me!" Goofy lumbered through the pathway. The king shrugged, following him without a word.

Donald turned and stomped his foot, "C'mon!"

And he too disappeared into the portal.

The girl appeared again, and Kairi and I hurried to approach her.

"Thank you, Naminé," Kairi whispered.

"Sure," 'Naminé' nodded politely. She turned to me, "See? We meet again, like we promised."

"Huh?" I stepped back.

To my surprise, a figure was standing in my old spot.

He winked at me.

"Roxas?"

"You said we'd meet again," he said to Naminé, diverting his attention to her immediately.

Ouch.

"But when we did, we might not recognize each other."

"I did, didn't I?"

"But I knew you." He smiled, "You're hard to forget."

She giggled, "It's strange…"

"I think I understand. I see myself the way you remember me. And you see yourself the way I remember you."

"I always thought…" she looked at her sandaled feet. "I always thought nobodies were doomed to fade back into darkness…"

"Yeah," Roxas' grin grew. "But you and I didn't. We got to meet our original selves."

Finally, her angelic face split into a grin. "So, we can be together again!"

"Right," he moved to stand next to her, staring at me. "Anytime Sora and Kairi are together."

The two stared at me, willing something in their blue eyes…blue like Sara's…

I looked at my feet.

"Sora," Roxas waved his hands. "Nobody to Sora, do you read me? Cheer up. You'll have our sister back in no time."

"Our sister?"

He grinned, "I love her just as much as you do." He suddenly glared at Riku, "Touch her and I'll beat your ass back into the realm of darkness."

"Really? You too?"

Naminé laughed, "We'll all be together again…as long as Sora and Kairi are together…"

"We'll be together every day. Right Sora?" Kairi took my hand and squeezed gently.

Sara…she's still out there…all alone…I can't believe I'm gonna just _leave_ her…

"She's talking to you." Roxas coughed subtly.

Shoot. "Uh…yeah!"

A sort of…satisfaction gleamed in our nobodies' eyes.

Kairi and Naminé linked hands, and with a glow of light, Naminé was gone.

"Look sharp," Roxas nudged me. He pointed at Riku, "Seriously man. Touch her and kiss your reproductive organs _goodbye_."

"I'd like to see you try!" He snarled. "I'm so sick of everyone _doing _this!"

Kairi laughed, breaking the hostility. Roxas shut his eyes with a smile.

"You know, I kinda want to meet her. She seems like…fun."

And with a glow of light, he was gone too. Warmth spread through my chest, and an immediate consciousness in the back of my head settled.

I patted myself down, uncomfortable with this change.

Riku cuffed me on the back, "Don't worry. You're all still you."

"Hey!" Kairi beamed, "Let's go home!"

"Riku…c'mon." I nudged him. "Sara would be heartbroken if you pulled another disappearing act."

His face finally split into a smile, "Yeah."

"Wipe that smirk off your face," I growled, "That doesn't mean I'm ok with it!"

"Hey!"

Kairi giggled and stepped into the portal.

The ends began to fray. Panic coursed through my system. Riku yanked on my sleeve, sprinting for the portal.

"Sora! Riku!"

We were too late. It dissolved under our fingertips.

"Huh?"

"What?"

Suddenly, a kunai flew up from below, catching Riku in the shoulder.

With a cry, he fell to his knees.

I groaned.

"Are you _serious_?"


	37. Help Me

Thirty-Seven

Thankfully, Riku didn't pass out, and the removal was relatively easy and clean. Except for Riku's crying.

"I didn't _cry_!" Riku snarled, performing a quick nose-dive on the vehicle. After he was healed, the platform tipped. He sprinted off, landing on a parked hover vehicle of some sort.

"I saw Xemnas ride up on it," he admitted when I asked how he knew it was there.

Currently, we were dodging constant attacks from Sara's dragon thing. There was no sign of my sister yet.

I rolled my eyes, "You _so_ did."

"Shut up!" He banked left sharply.

I hit another disc of light into the dragon. It squealed and wiggled, sending out…hordes of heartless. Really? _Really_?

"This is so not fair," I whined, smashing one out of the sky. "Why can _she_ control heartless, and all I get is this crappy key?"

"I'll take it if you don't want it."

"No. It's mine. It likes me more anyway."

"Whatever." He stood, activating a shield.

The heartless ship crashed into it head-on, blasting into smithereens and tumbling into the endless expansion of skyline below. The others were a cake walk.

"So, what's the plan?"

"Well," Riku pointed. "Those glowing tubes on the side seem to be vital to something. We should see what happens when we blow them up."

"Why?"

"To kill the dragon?"

"What if Sara's in there?"

"She'll be injured, we rescue her, put the necklace on her, and go home."

"Ok. What if she's not in there?"

"We find her, injure her, rescue her, put the necklace on her, and go home."

"You make it sound so…so simple…"

He shrugged, "It's a business thing. Father does it all the time."

"Alright, let's get to destroying this monster."

Riku grinned, "Destroying stuff, that's something we're good at, right?"

I nodded, "Destroying stuff and messing up situations. We should go professional."

"Dibs on being the CEO."

"It's not like I'd know what to do."

We kept up the playful banter as Riku maneuvered the ship into place. It took a lot of twisting, but we finally managed to get alongside the dragon.

More heartless appeared.

"Get closer to the tubes!" I called over the clamor of firing weapons, "I'll take care of the ships!"

"Got it!"

He swerved, and I activated my wisdom form. "Eat light, suckers!"

Riku laughed, "Can you _get_ cheesier? At this rate, Sara looks cooler than us!"

I shot them endlessly, diverting some hits to the tubes. "Sara managed to stab you in the shoulder, twice. I think that automatically makes her cooler than us!"

"Man, that sucks!" He quickly activated a shield as they opened fire. I scowled, but waited.

To my surprise, a surge of dark energy slammed the rest of them into the side of the dragon.

"I _will_ be cooler than her!"

I laughed and deactivated my drive. Without another word, I severed the glowing tube.

Weird goop splashed all over us, both of us groaning in disgust impulsively. The dragon rolled away from us.

Smoke began to leak out of the sides, and the whole twisting structure tumbled to the ground.

"Sweet! That was easy!"

Riku and I fist-bumped, celebrating our epic-ness.

Of course, we didn't notice the tornado until it sucked us in.

Riku and I batted the darkness off uselessly, to no avail. It smothered me, pushing down on my throat. I couldn't talk. I couldn't breathe.

"Hang on!" Riku screamed hoarsely. He revved the engine and sped through the thick fog. I brushed off the tendrils sticking to my coat, and we broke through.

000

The intruders have arrived. I grinned to myself, tracing the grooves of my arm rest idly with a fingertip. The tall one. He'll suffer. For so long I laid on that street, shivering and crying to myself. No more. The boy dies. And it'll be me driving the knife into his heart. I shut my eyes and sighed, leaning back in my chair. He would look up at me with those green eyes, begging for mercy.

And I would merely twist the handle.

Beautiful.

"SARA!" I could tell by the rasp in the short one's voice that he was screaming at the top of his lungs. Still, I could barely hear him over the roaring wind.

I smiled to myself, enjoying the intricate design.

"The carving on this chair is _magnificent_," I finally met their eyes. "Isn't it?"

With a snap of my fingers, three heartless wizards appeared.

"They're trying to hurt me," I whimpered. "Help me."

They snapped into a flurry of attacks.

I never realized what I could do with heartless. It's simple. I control all the hearts. Thus, I control all the heartless! It's a beautiful system.

Absolutely beautiful.

The tall one slashed, only to find his target gone.

It had teleported behind him, and it launched a fireball straight at the teen's backside.

I roared with laughter when the spell hit its target, making the boy leap and yowl with pain. I kicked out my feet and rocked back and forth, hugging myself to keep warm.

It's still cold.

My laughter cut off as I was roughly grabbed by the arm and thrown to the ground. Immediately, I snarled, twirling and slamming my foot into the short one's face.

The tall one grabbed me from behind, tossing me farther away from the throne.

My hip awkwardly slammed into the floor, and I groaned, rolling over. I pulled a throwing star out and launched it.

The boy merely batted it away with his sword.

I growled, pushing to my feet. A streak of pain zipped up my leg, making me collapse again.

No.

No, no, no, no, _NO_!

I forced myself up again, ignoring my protesting limb. I am not weak. I will not be weak. I will win!

I pulled out my dagger, sticking out my hand.

The tall one rushed me. I ducked under his slash, slamming my elbow into his tailbone.

I ignored the tingling on my funny bone, looping my leg in between his and kicking.

He tumbled to the ground.

The other one slammed his weapon into my leg.

I screamed with rage, shoving him with all my might and leaping for the throne.

I was yanked back by the tall one.

No matter. I bit on the arm hauling me.

"OH GOD! GET HER OFF ME!"

Blood welled up in my mouth, and the muscles under my teeth spasmed violently.

Something knocked into my head, I tumbled to the ground. Stars buzzed before my eyes, flashes of black taking over my vision…

No.

I reached for my necklace.

_There's fire. There's so much fire. You're on fire._

They started to scream and run around like headless chickens, and slowly I crawled back to my throne. My beautiful chair.

I let go of the spell. "They're hurting me!"

This time I didn't underestimate them. I brought out a small army, led by a darkside.

"Sonnuva…"

The shorter one smashed into the darkside full force, driving his blade through its head. To my horror, it collapsed and dissolved.

"NO!"

The tall one had dealt with the others, and now they headed for me again.

"_NO_!" I could feel my left side pulsating still. I need more time. I need protection!

I reached for the feather in my hair.

_There's a barrier. You can't get past the barrier._

The tall one caught on though.

"SHOOT HER HAND! THAT'S CONTROLLING THE ILLUSIONS!"

The short one pointed his blade at me.

"It's over Sara."

And he shot.

000

She was ours. We had her. The shot passed right through the barricade (like I knew it would), and hit her hand. The illusion flashed out of existence, and we stalked forward.

She threw something at our feet.

The next thing I know, my surroundings began to blend together (well, more than usual) (man, I should really start wearing my glasses), and blackness began to creep in through the sides.

I hardly felt it when I hit the ground.

I woke up on a platform, surrounded by nothing but grey. Grey, like Sara. She wasn't good or bad. She just wanted to see the world die for what it did to her.

Sora lay beside me, still unconscious. There was no sign of Sara.

"Sara!" I screamed, "Show yourself!"

Sora climbed off the floor. We stared at each other for a moment, then nodded.

We have to hurt the one we love.

"It's a business thing," I whispered. "Father does it all the time."

"We're helping her," Sora murmured. "She's coming home with us."

Silence expanded the vastness.

A single sound.

A footstep.

Another. Another. Another. Click, click, click, click…small footsteps. A small girl appeared in the distance.

In her hands, she held two sai. She stared straight at us, stepping quietly. Yet, each click roared through my eardrums.

Slowly, I brought my fist up.

"We can do this."

Sora bumped his knuckles to mine.

"Yeah."

Sara stopped, eyes on us. Slowly, she twirled her knives. Her eyes never wavered.

"Sara!" I pleaded. "Snap out of this! This isn't you!"

"Come home with us Sara!" Sora added, "It'll be ok, I promise!"

"Intruders."

And with that one word, she lunged.


	38. Don't You Forget It

Thirty-Eight

My leg pulsated, but I didn't acknowledge it. Mind over matter.

_Crying is a sign of weakness_.

The boy, he made me cry. He made me weak. He will die.

To my dismay, they blocked my blow easily, lashing out and kicking my knees.

Fuck that. I let go of the sai and flipped back, cocking my left wrist back. The hidden knife appeared.

"Say goodbye to your spine."

"I really don't like it when she says that," the short one said to the tall one.

The tall one was suddenly right in front of me, moving faster than I could keep track of. I stumbled back, falling on my ass as his fist passed through where my stomach was.

I grabbed his extended arm and heaved.

To my surprise, he flew across the room. With a loud cry, he hit the ground. A crack rang out, and he lay still.

One down, one to go. This is easy.

"Sara! I know you're in there!" The short one was saying. "This isn't you! This isn't my little sister!"

I grabbed a kunai with my right, launching it at him. He dodged easily, but I was already in motion. I flipped over him, slicing the back of his exposed neck cleanly.

"HEAL!"

What? That's cheating! What a dickwad!

_NO! This isn't me!_

What?

I clutched my head, stemming that foreign consciousness. Shut up, shut up, shut up, _shut up_!

"RIKU!"

And the other one was on his feet too.

_Riku…oh Cthulhu, please don't hurt him. Don't hurt either of them…_

"SHUT UP!" I screamed, slamming down on that wriggling voice in my head.

I pointed to the small one.

"You die."

I pointed to the tall one.

"You suffer."

I grabbed my necklace.

"Die, _Sora_!"

To my surprise, "Riku" started laughing.

"Illusion. You never could do anything more than that, huh?" He launched a fire ball at me. I dodged, letting go of my necklace.

"Sora" was still on the ground.

I wrapped the lock of hair I stole from Sora's scalp around my finger.

_Blue magic focused on bending the will of anything to match your own (ie: making fire spread on command, having water launch someone in the air, stuff like that). It's complicated; you need a part of what you were controlling (a shell for water, ash for fire, leaf for earth, smoke for air, gravel for rock, etc.)._

_You need a part of what you're controlling._

"He's hurting me Sora," I grinned up at Riku innocently. "Help me."

000

I am way too hormonal. Sara's using my best friend as a puppet, and all I can think of is that little slash in the fabric of her cloak, just above her right breast.

My finger twitched as I realized just how much I wanted to run them over that pale streak of smooth flesh.

Sora's blade began to swing.

Ok, time to move.

I flipped back, thankful for those ridiculous gymnastics classes Mother signed me up for when I was young. Fighting is so much easier when you can pull off any number of acrobatics.

I landed on my hands, curling up and slamming my feet to the floor just as Sora swung again. I bit my lip and spun, kicking out my foot.

Like one of those 'Skip-It' things that Kairi was obsessed with, he jumped over it.

I had to use my blade to block the next attack. The clash of metal rattled through my arms, making them tingle. With a growl, I forced him back up.

He hit immediately, striking me in the stomach.

I tumbled to the ground, and he was already moving to make another attack.

Sora doesn't fight like this. I frowned, rolling out of the way.

I can't hurt him. He's not in control, but something's off about all of this. I cart wheeled out of the way of yet another crude swing.

Crude. He doesn't know how to use the Keyblade.

No.

_Sara_ doesn't know how to use the Keyblade.

It clicked. Sara doesn't give her opponent recovery time. She hits once, twice, three times—all in a row. She would rather have it over with quickly.

Sora was being controlled by Sara. And I've been fighting like it's _him_ I'm up against.

Problem, I leapt over another awkward blow.

I've never beat Sara in a fight.

I lifted my Keyblade, catching his. I slammed my foot into his chest with all my might, snatching the cylinder part of his blade and yanking with all my might.

He stumbled back.

With_out_ his Keyblade.

I grinned, twirling it and grabbing the handle. "What now Sara? Looks like you have to do your own fighting."

I approached her. She narrowed her eyes and stepped back.

It's over. It's almost over. I grinned, enjoying the hunt. Another stride forward.

"Retreating? What happened to 'you suffer'? You're just giving up like that?"

Sora leapt on my back, knocking me to the floor.

His arm looped around my neck, yanking. I gasped as my head snapped back, blocking my air supply.

Oh yeah. Sara kicks ass in hand-to-hand.

Welp, I'm screwed.

I twisted, slamming my elbow into his Adam's apple. He wheezed, and I hit it again.

Call me ruthless, but I'm not gonna die before getting in Sara's pants.

I halted at that train of thought.

Oh God, no wonder he wants to kill me.

He planted a knee firmly on my spine, pulling on my neck.

Oh no. I squeezed my eyes shut as my spine began to crack. I can go pretty far (I can touch my toes to my head), but while being strangled? This was _not_ going to be pretty.

I rolled over, slamming him into the ground. His grip loosened, and I planted my hands on his wrists, pushing them in opposite directions.

He lost his grip in no time, arms flying out. I let go and rolled off of him.

Before he could get up, I had him in a headlock. My calf was firmly keeping his tailbone to the floor.

He was pinned.

Slowly, I met Sara's horrified gaze.

"Your move."

000

I dropped Sora's hair to the floor. Riku let go of him, and the two got on their feet.

"You know what's so special about Gatekeeping?" I asked. Before they could answer, I already had. "They control hearts."

I held out my hands.

"Come to me."

The boys crumpled to the floor, writhing.

You see, hearts were my domain.

And I was claiming what's mine.

They screamed and thrashed, clawing at their chest. But to no avail.

Sora gasped, using what appeared to be the last of his strength to hurl something at my head.

It hit my forehead, and I caught it in my palm.

A pendant.

A blue teardrop pendant.

"_You're my little monkey, right?"_

"_And I heard the guys talking about ice cream. We need some of that too, right?"_

"_Naomi, I only have one niece! Let me spoil her!"_

"_I love you Sara. Don't you ever forget that."_

"_I love you Sara. Don't you ever forget that."_

"_I love you Sara. Don't you ever forget that."_

"_I love you Sara. Don't you ever forget that."_

"_Don't you ever forget that."_

"_Don't you ever forget that."_

"_Don't you ever forget that."_

"_Don't you ever forget that."_

"_DON'T YOU EVER FORGET THAT."_

No.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no.

NO.

"NO!" I clutched my hair and wailed.

The boys' screams reached a crescendo.

"SARA!"

"S—STOP! PLEASE!"

"SARA, DON'T DO THIS!"

"_SARA_!"

I covered my ears, "Shut up!"

"SARA!"

"SARA!"

"Shut UP!" I yanked on that core of power even harder. It was my domain. My _right_.

"SARA!" And then they did the unthinkable.

They got up. Clutching their chests, the two boys collapsed onto me, wrapping their arms around me weakly.

"_I love you Sara, don't you ever forget that."_

"I love you Sara," Sora whispered.

"Don't you ever forget that," Riku whispered.


	39. Home is Where the Heart is

Thirty-Nine

I woke up in that gray room, my chest throbbing dully.

I gasped and sat up.

The world swayed and the blood in my head sloshed discomfortingly. I was floating…and not in a good way.

"Slow down," a tender hand eased me back to the ground. "You'll faint again."

I grinned, reaching up to stroke Sara's cheek with my thumb. "Hey you."

Her plush lips curled into a small smile, "Hey." She whispered, putting her hand over mine.

"I'll kill you Riku. I really will."

"Go to hell," Sara snapped, "We're having a moment."

But she kissed my fingertips and put my hand back down, turning to her brother.

"You did it," she gave my hand a squeeze, indicating she was talking to me as well. "You beat me."

"Yeah," My beam grew, making me look like an idiot. "We did, didn't we?"

"Come on," she pulled us to our feet slowly. "Let's get you home."

"Sara," Sora put an arm around her. "Let's all go home."

000

A streak of light hit the water, the sparkling liquid curled into the sky, filling the air with a crisp splash. The figures broke through the water, shaking the water out of their eyes. Slowly, they made their way to shore.

A girl in pink noticed them, calling out and pointing. Without waiting for their response, she hurried to the edge of the water, ignoring the salt lapping at her pink sneakers.

The shorter boy broke out in a run, slapping away water. He was almost there…

His other friends tackled him, knocking him back into the water.

A large mouse ran into the water, bolting for the taller boy. He leapt, the boy caught him, and they hugged.

Finally, the short one managed to get out of the grip of his friends. He pulled something out of his pocket.

"We're back." He grinned.

"You're home," The girl replied.

She held out a hand, and he took it, slipping a star-shaped charm into her grip.

And then she noticed it.

"Where's Sara?"

Both boys froze.

Riku looked up at the sky.

"She said she'd be there if we needed her."

Sora looked down at the sand.

"But she had to sacrifice her home to save us."

"She's never coming back."


End file.
